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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 does Mr. Granger convince the crowd that the union is a bad idea?

2. Who joins Papa when he returns from the railroad to search for Stacey?

3. What does Cousin Bud tell them when he arrives?

4. What do the Logans learn from the phone call in Mr. Jamison's office?

5. What news does Mr. Jamison bring to the family?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are the demands of the farmers who arrived in front of the courthouse?

2. Describe what must Cassie be feeling as she watches the impact Stacey's running away has on her family?

3. Explain why Wordell's comments about Cassie's unkind treatment of Suzella matter so much to Cassie.

4. What does Stacey tell Papa when he writes home to ask about this year's crop?

5. In the final chapter, what does the Sheriff reveal about why he is letting Stacey and Moe go?

6. Describe what Stacey says about his experience after leaving home to work in the cane fields.

7. What happens when Mrs. Lee Annie goes to the courthouse to register to vote?

8. How does the ending of the story relate the title, "Will the Circle be Unbroken?"?

9. What impact does the arrival of Suzella have on Cassie?

10. Why is Dube Cross in favor of the union?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about Jeremy Sims and his relationship with the black children, especially the Logan children. Why does he stand out among the white families? Why is his situation so precarious? Which white adult in the story does he most remind you of?

Essay Topic 2

What did you learn from the novel about pre-civil-rights history? Write an essay detailing how closely this novel portrayed what actually happened during that period in our history? Give examples from the novel.

Resources:

http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/LitNote/A-Lesson-Before-Dying-Critical-Essays-The-Pre-Civil-Rights-South.id-63,pageNum-58.html

http://neabigread.net/books/lessonbeforedying/teachers/LessonBeforeDyingHandout2.pdf

http://www.wsulibs.wsu.edu/holland/masc/xcivilrights.html

http://www.pbs.org/harrymoore/

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1294360

http://www.centralhigh57.org/

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/till/

http://www.vcdh.virginia.edu/civilrightstv/

http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/civilrights/index.htm

http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/par0pro-1

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay that will answer the following questions: What was the "New Deal"? What were the Works Project Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps mentioned in the novel? What were these programs supposed to do?

(see the answer keys)

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