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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. During what battle in Montana was Custer killed?

2. Due to the violence to which Hector was born into, the narrator says it was inevitable Hector would become what?

3. Why is the narrator certain Hector did not get into the car with white strangers?

4. Who sang an old mourning song by the graveside after Hector's casket was buried?

5. Who holds Hector in the photograph the narrator has of him?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the narrator plan to do at the end of the story?

2. What does the narrator wish one of his uncle's killers would do after the funeral?

3. How does the narrator feel at the end of the story standing in the cemetery?

4. At the cemetery, who does the narrator imagine is in Hector's casket?

5. Why does the narrator say it was inevitable that Hector would become "a violent man who died violently" (3)?

6. What does one of the mourners say will happen in 100 years before they leave the cemetery?

7. What is the best thing the narrator's father ever said to him?

8. Who is Agnes? Why does the narrator have a picture of her?

9. How does the narrator imagine Hector met his death after leaving for Spokane?

10. Why does the narrator feel certain Hector was most likely killed by a member of his own tribe?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The only characters named in the story are Hector and Agnes. Write an essay analyzing why the author chose to name only these two characters. What impact did this have on your reading? How might this choice represent the theme of inherited pain or oppression?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing Alexie's decision to tell the story using first person point-of-view from the narrator's perspective. How does this impact the reader's understanding of the story's events? Is this effective? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

Write a brief essay analyzing Alexie’s choice to write "Happy Trails" in past tense. Do you agree with this choice? How would the story be different if written in a different tense?

(see the answer keys)

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