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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. Where does the paper accuse the strikers of coming from?

2. To whom does Mac write a letter asking for help?

3. What does Doc Burton say he is almost out of?

4. At the beginning of Chapter 14, what does the paper Mac picks up falsely accuse the strikers of?

5. Why does Doc Burton think Dan is upset?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Dick agree with Mac on concerning Joy's death?

2. Why is Dakin incarcerated for biting a cop?

3. Why does Dakin call Mac cold-blooded?

4. Where do the cows, bull calf, and lima beans for the strikers come from?

5. Why does Mac decide against leaving Joy's coffin open during the funeral?

6. What does the false headline in the paper claim that infuriates Mac?

7. What does Mac want to happen again, similar to Burke's incident, that he believes will push the men forward?

8. Why do Dakin and London send out squads of men at the beginning of Chapter 10?

9. To whom does Jim attribute his cool demeanor when London praises him for it?

10. Why does Mac put Doc Burton in a tent with ten armed guards to protect him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Is Dakin a likable character? Can the reader trust him? What sets him apart from the other men? What is it about Dakin that the reader is not fully convinced about? Write an essay that supports these claims and also shows how these suspicions about Dakin can foreshadow his eventual downfall.

Essay Topic 2

Chapter 12 can be characterized almost completely by dry and depressing adjectives and images. How does the chapter begin and end? What images are presented to create this somber, depressing, hopeless tone? Scour through the chapter and pick out specific quotations that show how this tone is expressed by Steinbeck and then construct a well-written essay explaining why you think this chapter is characterized in such a way. What is going on at this point in the novel? Use specific information from the text to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

In Chapters 1 and 2 the reader learns more about the Party, who the members are, and what the organization is like. Use information from the first two chapters to discuss what clues are given to show the grassroots of the men in the Party, their social status, their education, and the level of their organization. How does the information help shape the reader's thoughts about the Party?

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