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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. What does Sarny say her last name is in Chapter 1?
(a) Thomas.
(b) Waller.
(c) Freeman.
(d) Smith.

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

3. How does Mammy notate the ages of the slave children that she raises?
(a) By putting stakes in the ground.
(b) By marking notches on sticks.
(c) By scratching marks on the floor.
(d) By collecting pebbles in a jar.

4. What does John cover in his first "lesson" with Sarny in Chapter 3?
(a) The question mark.
(b) The letter A.
(c) The period.
(d) The number 1.

5. In Chapter 1, Sarny says that some believed she brought Nightjohn to the plantation by what manner?
(a) Acting intelligent.
(b) Train.
(c) Witchery.
(d) Begging the master.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Mrs. Waller's first name?

2. What does Sarny recall Mammy telling her to do with the coin that she found in the dirt in Chapter 2?

3. How old was Sarny when her birth mother was sold?

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

5. What term refers to the movement to end slavery?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does John behave toward the other slaves after his arrival in Chapter 3?

2. How does Sarny describe the process of meals for the slaves at the plantation in Chapter 3?

3. What job or jobs does Sarny do around the plantation in Chapter 1?

4. What is significant about the animal imagery that is seen in Chapter 3?

5. How does Sarny describe Mammy's method of praying in Chapter 2? Why does Mammy pray this way?

6. What does Mammy measure on the sticks that she keeps for each child on the plantation? Why?

7. What is the trade that John offers to make with Sarny in Chapter 3? How does Sarny feel about the offer?

8. How would you describe the tone and mood of the novel as established in Chapter 1?

9. What imagery and/or symbolism is used in describing the slaves on the plantation in Chapter 2?

10. What is the significance of John's scars when he first appears? Why do you think Waller chose John despite those scars?

(see the answer keys)

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