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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How much does the huge whale that appears off the port bow in Chapter 5 weigh?
(a) Seventy tons.
(b) Fifty tons.
(c) Sixty tons.
(d) Eighty tons.

2. In what direction does the wind shift, allowing the boats to sail towards Peru?
(a) East.
(b) North.
(c) South.
(d) West.

3. As described in Chapter 3, what does each whale boat contain?
(a) A boatsteerer and oarsmen.
(b) A mate and oarsmen.
(c) A mate, a boat steerer, and oarsmen.
(d) A mate and a boat steerer.

4. How long does the average hunt for a sperm whale take?
(a) One to two years.
(b) One to two months.
(c) Two to three years.
(d) Six months to a year.

5. How much water is each man given per day as the crew attempts to make it to land in Chapter 7?
(a) A pint.
(b) Three-quarters of a pint.
(c) A half pint.
(d) A quarter pint.

Short Answer Questions

1. In what year does the story take place in?

2. Which well known island is mentioned in Chapter 6 as a part of the Society Islands that the Nantucketers should have known about?

3. Whose idea is it to stop keeping track of the longitude in Chapter 7?

4. Which fictional novel was inspired by the sinking of the Essex?

5. When the men are close enough to attack the whale, what is used in order to pierce its vital organs?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is done to the Essex in order to prepare it for the trip?

2. How does the crew initially respond to the sinking of the Essex?

3. What are some of the facts that Philbrick discloses about the sinking of the Essex in the Preface?

4. How does Philbrick describe Pollard and his experience in Chapter 2?

5. What well known island is part of the Society Islands and why should the crew have been aware of it?

6. What is the process for "trying out" a whale?

7. What happens when the Essex tries to leave Nantucket?

8. How do two whales escape from Chase's boat in the beginning of Chapter 5?

9. As explained in Chapter 2, what route does a Nantucket whale ship normally take?

10. How does the crew of the Essex deal with the second whale sighted in Chapter 3, and what is a Nantucket sleigh ride?

(see the answer keys)

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