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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. Who does Coalhouse plan to kidnap and exchange for Willie Conklin?

2. Why do Coalhouse and his boys end up in the marble museum?

3. On the milk train going back to New Rochelle, what does Younger Brother contemplate?

4. Most people think that it was the work of a group of armed men, but what does the newspaper suggest?

5. How does Morgan dress?

Short Essay Questions

1. How have the fortunes of Tateh and The girl changed?

2. What is Sarah's funeral like?

3. What does Father decide to do to make up for the time he has not spent with The Boy?

4. What is Younger Brother's first act as a revolutionary and outlaw?

5. That spring, what happens at the Matteawan State Prison Farm?

6. After Coalhouse arranges for his gang to escape, what happens to him?

7. How do the police learn about the history of Coalhouse Walker, Jr.?

8. Why does J. P. Morgan want to meet with Henry Ford?

9. What causes the theater to shake where Houdini is performing?

10. What happens on Houdini's tour of Europe?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write your opinion of E. L. Doctorow's writing style. Include such things as his omitting quotation marks and writing in very short sentences. Cite specific passages in the novel that you think either did or did not convey (1) the feeling of the characters, (2) the imagery of the day, (3) the suspense of the plot, or any other concept you feel the novel addresses. How much does Doctorow's use of fictionalized real characters add to the interest of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Write a paper explaining the difference between an anarchist and a socialist. These strange bedfellows come together in the meeting Tateh takes Evelyn to. Anarchists oppose any form of government and socialists promote total government control. Explain why Tateh did not agree with anarchism or communism. Why was he a socialist? Then decide if his later affluence changed his political ideas and why.

Essay Topic 3

Write a paper comparing Evelyn Nesbit with notorious movie stars of the 20th century. A good comparison might be to Marilyn Monroe. Compare their beginnings, Evelyn's posing nude for a statue and Marilyn appearing nude in Playboy Magazine, their notoriety in the press, and their many romantic entanglements. Doctorow suggests that Evelyn is the model for all the show business women who followed her. This should be a fun paper to write.

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