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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 many goats does Lieutenant Cecil Stone claim to have in Chapter 27?

2. How old was the narrator's bride in Chapter 1 when they married?

3. Who is the author of Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln?

4. Who is described as having been killed by the Rebs for tearing down the Rebel flag from a private in Chapter 33?

5. What is Cynthia's last name?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the unnatural predilection that Roger Bevins III describes in Chapter 9?

2. How is the appearance of the Reverend Everly Thomas described in Chapter 9?

3. What are some examples of cited excerpts included in Chapters 3 and 4? What information do they relate?

4. Who are the Three Bachelors and how are they described?

5. How is Abraham Lincoln's demeanor described in the Wartime Washington: The Civil War Letters of Isabelle Perkins excerpt in Chapter 7?

6. Why does Willie refuse to pass on from the bardo for much of the novel?

7. What is the inciting incident that transitions the plot to rising action?

8. How does Hans Vollman describe his death in Chapter 1?

9. What is the significance of the state dinner held by the Lincolns in the novel?

10. How is the appearance of Hans Vollman described in Chapter 9?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and analyze the character of Hans Vollman in Lincoln in the Bardo. For how long has Vollman been in the bardo? Who is his best friend? How did Vollman come to die? How does his character evolve in the course of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the lives and deaths of Eddie and Betsy Baron in Lincoln in the Bardo. Where did Eddie and Betsy live when they were alive? What did they think of their circumstances? Why do they remain in the bardo?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the narrative style of Lincoln in the Bardo. Who are the principle narrators? Is their narrator related in first, second, or third-person perspective? What is the impact of having so many different narrators in the novel?

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