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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In whose memory is Nightjohn dedicated by the author in the opening pages?
(a) In Sally Hemings' memory.
(b) In Frederick Douglass's memory.
(c) In Harriet Tubman's memory.
(d) In John Brown's memory.

2. What does Sarny say is forbidden in the slaves' sleeping quarters in Chapter 3?
(a) Water.
(b) Light.
(c) Food.
(d) Beds.

3. What material does Mammy make John's pants from in Chapter 3?
(a) Cotton.
(b) Suede.
(c) Denim.
(d) Canvas.

4. What does Sarny describe Mammy putting her head into in order to pray in Chapter 2?
(a) A cooking pot.
(b) A fireplace.
(c) A burlap sack.
(d) A holy veil.

5. What had Mammy done when Sarny copied the letters from the feed sack in the dirt when she was younger?
(a) She told Waller.
(b) She smacked her.
(c) She laughed.
(d) She praised her.

6. What does Sarny say that the slaves call the master and mistress when they are in the slave quarters and out of hearing in Chapter 2?
(a) Dog droppings or horse crap.
(b) The perpetrator of evil.
(c) Witches and warlocks.
(d) The kind and queen of the castle.

7. What euphemism does Sarny use to describe menstruation in Chapter 1?
(a) Aunt Mary.
(b) The spots.
(c) The trouble.
(d) Womanhood.

8. How does Sarny describe John's back when he arrives in Chapter 3?
(a) It is black and smooth.
(b) It is proud beneath his shirt.
(c) It is covered in scars.
(d) It is milky white.

9. What European country was the first to engage in the New World slave trade?
(a) France.
(b) Great Britain.
(c) Portugal.
(d) Spain.

10. How does Sarny describe the financial circumstances of the master's family in Chapter 2?
(a) They have gone bankrupt.
(b) They are poor.
(c) They are rich.
(d) They are struggling after the war.

11. What does Sarny think about when she finally lays down in bed at the end of Chapter 3?
(a) Mrs. Waller's dog.
(b) Her mother.
(c) The letter A.
(d) Her father.

12. What were the "funny lines" that Sarny recalls seeing on the side of a feed sack in Chapter 3?
(a) GRAIN.
(b) FEED.
(c) 100 lbs.
(d) $20.

13. How would you describe the treatment of the slaves on Waller's plantation?
(a) The slaves are treated like kings.
(b) The slaves are treated like animals.
(c) The slaves are treated like treasured valuables.
(d) The slaves are treated compassionately.

14. How would you describe Sarny's perception of life outside of the plantation in Chapter 2?
(a) Sarny experienced a brutal life outside the plantation when she was bought by Mr. Waller.
(b) Sarny has no knowledge of life outside of the plantation.
(c) Sarny's experiences outside the plantation have led her to desire freedom.
(d) Sarny views life outside the plantation as harsher than life within the plantation.

15. What does John call out for from the slaves in the sleeping quarters on his first night at the plantation in Chapter 3?
(a) Extra food.
(b) Water.
(c) Tobacco.
(d) Whiskey.

Short Answer Questions

1. What kind of flowers is Sarny working on in the flower bed in the beginning of Chapter 2?

2. What kind of coin does Sarny describe finding in the dirt in Chapter 2?

3. In what century was the Atlantic slave established?

4. What does Sarny say they pour down the trough in the mornings for the slaves in Chapter 3?

5. What major theme of the novel emerges in Chapter 3?

(see the answer keys)

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