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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. Where does Rip spend time with his friends?
(a) Hunting in the woods.
(b) On a bench outside the village inn.
(c) Fishing in the Hudson River.
(d) Inside the bar of a local hotel.

2. On page 29, the setting sun causes something to light up and glow "like a crown of glory." This is an example of what literary technique?
(a) Alliteration.
(b) Understatement.
(c) Metaphor.
(d) Simile.

3. Which nation controls New York at the time when Rip and the village are introduced to the reader?
(a) The United States.
(b) Holland.
(c) Sweden.
(d) Great Britain.

4. In the epigraph from Cartwright's play, to whom does the speaker swear that he will be honest?
(a) The Saxon god, Woden.
(b) The Celtic god, Alator.
(c) The Norse god, Odin.
(d) The Christian God.

5. After he can no longer spend time with his friends, where does Rip start going to spend time away from his home and farm?
(a) The woods.
(b) The barn.
(c) The river.
(d) The seashore.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where is the village that Rip lives in?

2. Who is "Dame" Van Winkle?

3. On page 29, the narrator says that a person might have "descried" the smoke from the village. What does this mean a person might have done?

4. On page 28, the reader is told that the narrator of the main story is known for "scrupulous" accuracy. What kind of accuracy is this?

5. How does Rip's wife treat his dog?

Short Essay Questions

1. What relationship does Rip have with the village children, and how does it characterize him?

2. Describe the condition of Rip's home and farm.

3. Describe how Rip's relationship with the dog contrasts with his wife's relationship with the dog.

4. Describe the relationship between Rip and his wife.

5. Describe the condition of Rip's children.

6. Describe the contents of the story's epigraph and tell how this relates to the frame narrative.

7. Explain what the frame narrative says about the historian who recorded Rip's story--where does his work come from, and how reliable is it?

8. How is the setting of the Catskills described?

9. What do Rip and his friends do when they gather together outside the village inn, and how does this characterize Rip?

10. Explain the relationship of Washington Irving, Diedrich Knickerbocker, and Geoffrey Crayon.

(see the answer keys)

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