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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 do Indian envoys bring to De Soto and his men?

2. Which of the following is NOT a term used by the narrator to describe Queen Elizabeth?

3. Who is Thomas Morton?

4. What happens to Columbus when he finally makes it back to Spain?

5. Who did Ponce de Leon's pilot previously work for?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kind of person does Williams say that Daniel Boone is?

2. What is Champlain's reaction to hearing that there will be an attempt on his life?

3. What proof does Cotton Mather offer to show that witches can make themselves invisible?

4. What was Aaron Burr like, according to Williams?

5. Why does Williams find Champlain delightful?

6. How do Columbus' voyages east, returning to Spain, differ from his voyages west, heading to the New World?

7. How is "De Soto and the New World" narrated?

8. What role does Williams say that Edgar Allen Poe plays in American literature?

9. What is Ponce de Leon's dog doing when he is killed?

10. Why does Ponce de Leon forget his dog when he is driven away from Guadaloupe?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the characters of Thomas Morton and Cotton Mather. How are the two men similar? How are they different? Could they have gotten along if they had lived in the same community? Why or why not? Use evidence from In the American Grain to support your answer.

Essay Topic 2

What does Williams mean when he says that fear drove Benjamin Franklin's curiosity, that he built a nation based on the desire to huddle and protect? Write an essay explaining why you think Williams might feel this way. Support your answer with evidence from the book.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you analyze the structure that William uses to relate the story of Columbus and his voyages. Why does Williams alternate between his own point of view and that of Columbus? Why does he alternate between Columbus' experiences in the New World and his experiences in the Old? Explain.

(see the answer keys)

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