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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. On what date did Rebecca Harding Davis die?

2. What kind of bird does the narrator describe chirping desolately beside her in a cage in the beginning of “Life in the Iron Mills”?

3. Hugh’s legs are describes as being ironed because he made how many attempts at escape from jail in “Life in the Iron Mills”?

4. The mill where Hugh Wolfe works makes iron for what in “Life in the Iron Mills”?

5. Rebecca Harding and L. Clarke Davis became engaged how long after meeting?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Hugh’s death described in “Life in the Iron Mills”? How does Hugh die?

2. How would you describe the narrator of “Life in the Iron Mills”? Is the narrator involved in the action of the story?

3. How does the author of “A Biographical Interpretation” depict Rebecca Harding Davis’s relationship with her first publisher?

4. How are the themes of poverty and class entrapment illustrated through the character of Hugh in “Life in the Iron Mills”?

5. How does the narrator describe Hugh’s interaction with Deborah when she brings him dinner at the mill in “Life in the Iron Mills”?

6. How is the sculpted figure discovered by one of the visitors at the mill described in “Life in the Iron Mills”?

7. How did the outbreak of the Civil War impact Rebecca Harding Davis’s work, according to the author of “A Biographical Interpretation”?

8. How does the author of “A Biographical Interpretation” describe Rebecca Harding Davis’s early years of marriage?

9. What legacy did Rebecca Harding Davis leave behind, according to the author of “A Biographical Interpretation”?

10. How would you describe the setting of “Life in the Iron Mills”? What tone is established through the story’s setting?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss the narrative style of “Anne.” How does this narrative style differ from the previous stories in the collection? How would the story differ if it were told from a first-person perspective? Who is the narrator of the story?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss the characters of Anne and Mrs. Palmer in “Anne.” How old are each of these characters? What do they look like? What are their actions in the story?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the narrative style and setting of “The Wife’s Story.” What clues in the text indicate the time period in which the story takes place? Where in the United States is the story set? Is the story related from first, second, or third person?

(see the answer keys)

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