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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. How old is Phoebe when we see her bringing lunch to her brother Jack?

2. What do his co-workers accept about Dale Hawthorne since his son has died?

3. When Jack is on the tractor and a storm begins, what does he do?

4. Where does Jack feel a sense of belonging when he is working?

5. How does Jack behave toward his father and his uncles while working?

Short Essay Questions

1. Later in the evening following their lunch, Jack comes to understand about why Phoebe is alarmed about his not saying grace before eating. What does he realize grace means to Phoebe?

2. While Jack is sitting with Phoebe under the tree at lunchtime, he senses she wants to say something to him. How does he react? What might Phoebe wanted to talk about with her brother?

3. Jack's father has been gone over three weeks. In what position does Jack find himself? Have his responsibilities changed? Who is he working with now?

4. As Jack rides the tractor after the accident and tells his stories of woe, how does he react to who he has become?

5. How does Jack Hawthorne spend much of his time after the accidental death of his brother? What does he do during those activities?

6. What does Jack think about as he prepares the cows for milking after realizing why Phoebe wanted him to say grace? How does he feel as these thoughts enter his mind?

7. How old is Phoebe when she brings lunch out to the field? As she comes out to the field, how is she described by the narrator? What are her responsibilities?

8. With practice Jack is able to have major accomplishments with his horn playing. What are some of those accomplishments? Which ones seem especially important?

9. How do Jack's family and his mother's friends view his passionate interest in his horn? Are they concerned? Why?

10. Where is Arcady Yegudkin from? How does he get to America? What is his story?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Although this is a piece of fiction, Gardner did live on a farm and did run over his brother with a tractor when they were young. Does it help or hinder to know the basis of this story is part of the writer's experience?

Essay Topic 2

Three of the characters in this short story, Dale, Jack and Yegudkin, find redemption in their lives. What is each man's form of redemption? Compare and contrast them.

Essay Topic 3

How is Jack's experience with death and loss similar to that of Yegudkin? How is it different?

(see the answer keys)

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