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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. What could The Boy see in the polished rear doors of the Pierce Arrow hearse?

2. What is the truth about Baron Ashkenazy?

3. Who wrote Morgan's favorite story, The Birthmark?

4. Who were most of the mourners at Sarah's funeral?

5. What has The Boy taken to doing now that Sarah is communicative?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Father return alone to New York, leaving the family in Atlantic City.

2. Describe Morgan's buildings on Madison Avenue in Murray Hill.

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

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

5. How does Mother's and Father's relationship change in Atlantic City?

6. When the police cannot find Coalhouse, what does Father do?

7. What does Sarah try to do to help Coalhouse?

8. What does Younger Brother do that the family is completely unaware of?

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

10. What does Morgan think about making automobiles available to the masses?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Gather information of President Howard Taft and write a short paper about him. Taft's rise to power corresponded with the turn of the century idea that obesity, especially in men, was a sign of material success. Taft weighed over 300 pounds and it is said that a special bathtub had to be installed in the White House to accommodate him. Your paper should include characters in the book as examples of men who fit that accepted image of success. By contrast Houdini and Younger Brother are of athletic build and represent change in the novel. Explain.

Essay Topic 2

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 3

Do some research and write a brief paper on J. Pierpont Morgan. Political cartoons of his time pictured Morgan as being bigger than Uncle Sam. In fact, he did bail out the U.S. economy at one time. There is even an undertone of racism in Morgan in the novel when he cables the D. A. to give Coalhouse his auto and hang him. From your research, explain how Doctorow's use of Morgan in the novel is believable.

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