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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 does the young Danzinger boy ask Alexander to do for him after it becomes evident the renegades are going to kill him?

2. Jesse travels to visit friends in a nearby company where he hears the men singing. What song does hear them singing?

3. What do the Union soldiers take from Marguerite and her servants as they are preparing to leave the city?

4. What is the Confederate President's answer to Duncan's question at the event?

5. What does Duncan say will happen to the people of Virginia if the state falls?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Jesse's men react after he reads them the Gettysburg Address?

2. What does Duncan tell Sallie about Midge when she comes to visit him in the hospital?

3. After telling his wife, Leona, in a letter that he has become a Christian, what does Catesby urge his wife, Leona, to do?

4. What does Sallie realize about her Cousin Molly's attitude in Part IV, Chapter 50?

5. What do the Union soldiers tell Kizzy and Mingo after stopping them on the road as they leave Wilmington?

6. After pulling over the Danzinger family's buggy, what do the renegades order Alexander to do after they question Seth about being a spy?

7. What does the army recruiter say that convinces Jesse to join the Union army?

8. What happens to Jesse and the other black soldiers who are captured by the Confederates after a battle?

9. Why have the renegades stopped the Danzinger family and Alexander's buggy in Part IV, Chapter 44?

10. How does Marguerite take control of the situation when Mingo leaves Kizzy pregnant and distraught on the road out of Wilmington?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The war has caused tremendous changes not only in the characters but also in society. Each character deals with these changes in a different way. Analyze the theme of change in the novel, particularly how it pertains to society. How have these changes affected the characters? What changes have been for the better? What changes have been for the worse? Does something as catastrophic as war need to happen to bring about great change?

Essay Topic 2

Alexander and Sallie are hastily married and they both have conflicting feelings about it. They are both important characters to the story. Examine Alexander and Sallie's relationship throughout the story. How did Alexander and Sallie meet? Is Sallie nervous about taking Alexander home to meet her family? Why? How does Alexander feel about being married compared to how Sallie feels? Why do Alexander and Sallie grow apart? Do they ever get a divorce?

Essay Topic 3

Miss Marguerite is the narrator and one of the main characters in "Jacob's Ladder: A Story of Virginia During the War". Analyze the character of Miss Marguerite throughout her different name changes in her life: Midge, Maggie, and Marguerite. How did Marguerite change with each name? How does this influence the overall story? Where is Midge from, and where does she live? Who owns Midge? What is different about Midge's race from that of other slaves?

(see the answer keys)

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