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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which one of the following is a concern that White has about the illustrations in "Charlotte's Web"?
(a) The lettering of the title.
(b) The style of the spider.
(c) The color of the pig.
(d) The shade of the sky.

2. Where in Florida do the Whites travel to in 1963?
(a) Tampa.
(b) West Palm Beach.
(c) Miami.
(d) Sarasota.

3. When is the children's concert of "The Trumpet of the Swan" performed?
(a) May 13, 1972.
(b) April 15, 1972.
(c) April 15, 1971.
(d) May 13, 1971.

4. When does a former secretary of the New Yorker contact White about "The Elements of Style"?
(a) December, 1982.
(b) September, 1982.
(c) August, 1982.
(d) April, 1982.

5. In White's opinion, how different is the New Yorker in the 1950s?
(a) Completely different than it was in the 1920s.
(b) No different than it was in the 1920s.
(c) Slightly different than it was in the 1920s.
(d) Moderately different than it was in the 1920s.

Short Answer Questions

1. How long does White carefully study the screenplay for "Charlotte's Web" before returning it to his agent with his annotations?

2. In a letter to Robert Coates, what does White say he used to facilitate his recovery of swollen throat muscles?

3. When do White and Katharine retire from the New Yorker?

4. What trouble does White mention he has when writing, due to his impaired vision?

5. After a series of illnesses, how many months of the year does Katharine arrange to work for the New Yorker?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does White categorize "Charlotte's Web" in his October, 1952 letter to Ursula Nordstrom of Harper & Brothers, and what are the sales like for the book's first edition?

2. What joke does White make to his brother, Stanley, before having a hernia operation?

3. What illnesses does Katharine battle between 1960 and 1965, and how does she adjust her work schedule?

4. What does White reveal about his farm in his answer to the questions of Mrs. Bard's fifth-grade class in Larchmont, New York?

5. In another letter to Stanley, what does White say about his use of traction?

6. What is White's problem with taxi cab doors in his 1950 memo to Harold Ross?

7. What feedback and advice does White offer to James Thurber for the story,"The Thirteen Clocks"?

8. How does Hanna-Barbera acquire the rights to produce the animated motion picture version of "Charlotte's Web"?

9. What is the subject of the exchanged letters between White and President Richard Nixon in July, 1969?

10. What are the elements included in the Philadelphia Orchestra's children's concert of "The Trumpet of the Swan" in 1972?

(see the answer keys)

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