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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. How is the boy cured?

2. The village men act out a dance with what?

3. Where is the Kon-Tiki's final destination?

4. What weapons do the crew members sleep with?

5. How does the fish remain stuck?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do the men keep occupied while out on the sea? How are conflicts handled?

2. What causes the men to rethink the landing on the island?

3. What evidence is there of the stone work on Easter Island? How did it change?

4. What item was destroyed on Easter Island that may have detailed the region's history? Who destroyed the item?

5. How is the crew rescued? Where are they taken and by who?

6. What happens when the raft approaches Angatau?

7. Heyerdahl thinks about how the ancients might have gathered or transported water. What were his conclusions?

8. Where do the men nearly land? How do they determine the name?

9. What hinders the Kon-Tiki from traveling to a second island?

10. Pilot fish are some of the fish that accompany the raft during the trip. How does Heyerdahl describe the pilot fish?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Peruvian President Nieto is interested in learning more about the Kon-Tiki expedition which he had read about in the newspaper. While the president does not think that the trip will be a success, he is willing to help. Examine the President's thoughts, motives, and possible biases. Was the president willing to help for the benefit of science, for personal gain, or neither?

Essay Topic 2

About the time the crew arrived at the tiny, uninhabited island, this comment was made: "'Purgatory was a bit damp,' said Bengt, 'but heaven is more or less as I'd imagined it.'" What did Bengt mean? To what was he comparing Purgatory and Heaven? Do you feel that the comparison was accurate? How might the other crew members felt about the comment?

Essay Topic 3

There are several instances in which the Kon-Tiki encounters large and dangerous coral reefs. Explain how the crew might have avoided all the reefs, the deciding factors, and the results of the crew's actions. What might have changed the way the crew acted and reacted?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 624 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample