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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. Where does Vivian's family take a tenement room for ten dollars a month after arriving in New York?

2. Where is Mr. Byrne's family from in Ireland?

3. What is the name of Molly's foster father?

4. Who is the woman that oversees the children on the orphan train in 1929?

5. What does the narrator say in Section 1 is the thing that Molly hates the most about being in the foster care system?

Short Essay Questions

1. How would you describe the "historical" aspects of the novel? Is the author effective in illustrating the historical realities of the time period?

2. What is indicated by Molly's response when Vivian asks about Molly's mother in Section 2?

3. How would you describe Molly's emotional shield in the beginning of the story? What led to the development of this shield?

4. What aspects of foreshadowing can be seen in the Prologue to Orphan Train?

5. How would you describe Vivian's relationships with her fellow workers at the clothing manufacturing company owned by the Byrnes?

6. How would you describe Vivian's objectives as she and Molly begin working in the attic in Section 2?

7. Discuss the literary allusions in the novel. What two literary works are referenced repeatedly? What do these books have in common with the characters of Orphan train?

8. What similarities of circumstance are established between the characters of Vivian and Molly in the beginning of the novel?

9. What are Molly's first impressions of the attic when she is taken there in Section 2? Who leads Molly to this area of Vivian's house?

10. What conversation takes place between Vivian and Dutchy on the orphan train in Minneapolis?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What does the term “Irish Diaspora” mean? When did the most Irish immigrants arrive in the United States? How did Anti-Irish sentiment in the U.S. originate and evolve? How is Anti-Irish sentiment illustrated in Orphan Train?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the history of the Wabanaki Indians and the Penobscot people and which examines correlations between the prejudices against Native Americans and prejudices against the Irish. How are these prejudices illustrated in Orphan Train? What are some examples of bias that are seen against Molly in the novel? What are biases against Vivian that are presented?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze and discuss the character of Vivian Daly in Orphan Train. What function do you think Vivian plays in the story? Is Vivian a protagonist, antagonist, or catalyst? What effect does Vivian have on Molly? What are the admirable qualities of Vivian’s character? How does Vivian’s character differ in the contemporary timeline (as a 91-year-old-woman) from her depiction as a child in 1929?

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