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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. What has Pollard's Nantucket house become in modern times?

2. After being rescued by the Dauphin, how many captains join Pollard for dinner at the end of Chapter 12?

3. What does Chase put in each boat at the beginning of Chapter 10?

4. Contrary to what the men think, what island are they actually on in Chapter 9?

5. What happens to Hendricks' boat on January 14?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Chase's boat deal with a shark attack?

2. How does Chase choose the events to include in a book about the Essex?

3. What is the crew concerned about as it sees land in the beginning of Chapter 9?

4. How does Cole die in Chapter 12?

5. What happens at the end of Chapter 11 when lots are drawn in Pollard's boat?

6. What happens to Chase at the end of his life?

7. What does the exhibit for the Essex at the Whaling Museum feature?

8. What idea does Pollard have for sailing out of the calm winds in Chapter 8?

9. What discovery do the men in Chase's boat make while trying to combat the heat?

10. How are Wright, Weeks, and Chappel rescued from Henderson Island?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Foreshadowing is a major part of the first half of the book. Provide an analysis of three examples of foreshadowing, when they occur, and the events that they are signaling.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze three possible theories about why the whale might have attacked the Essex. Use the book to reference the sources of these theories and the reasons behind them. Also, explain which one you think is the most logical and why.

Essay Topic 3

Philbrick chooses to begin the story with the Dauphin's rescue of Pollard's boat. Use the book as a reference to discuss the reasons why he selects this particular event as the starting point. Also, include a description of the rescue and an analysis of the other facts about the upcoming tragedy that Philbrick discloses in the Preface.

(see the answer keys)

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