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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 moves Morgan's house on top of Hyde's ranch?

2. Where was Slade born?

3. What does the narrator's party shoot at to start a fire?

4. When does the great Indian Mail Robbery take place?

5. Who does the narrator get to sign the requests for money to the government in order to help his brother?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the narrator help his brother in writing to the government for money?

2. How does the author build up the anticipation for the book in the Prefatory?

3. How does the narrator's party claim their mining areas along the mountains in Unionville, and what happens as they try to work in them?

4. What is the economy of Salt Lake City like, and how long do the travelers stay there?

5. What leads the narrator and his party to Esmeralda?

6. What are the details of the court case between Hyde and Morgan, and what is the outcome?

7. What is the Great American Desert like, and what is interesting about Carson Lake?

8. What is the situation of Mr. Street and how does it provide an example of Utah's way of governing for the narrator?

9. How does the narrator discuss the Mormon religion?

10. What is the myth of the Pony Express Riders?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Writing is a very important factor for the narrator in Roughing It and is a crucial element in his success at the end of the book.

1) Describe how the narrator's gift of words and communication is presented throughout the story.

2) Explain how the narrator uses his skills to begin a successful career at the end of the story and why this is both a natural and ironic choice for him.

3) Analyze how the narrator finds success when he uses his ability to write by describing 3 examples from the book. Also, include Twain's conclusion about traveling, and how writing inspires him to use his experiences in a historic way that has a lasting effect on future generations.

Essay Topic 2

Mr. Whiteman is the elusive subject of another plan to strike it rich by the narrator.

1) Describe the background of Mr. Whiteman and why it is believed that he can lead people to a gold mine.

2) Describe Mono Lake and the narrator's experiences there. Include what the lake represents in the theme of the narrator's quest for fortune.

3) Explain how the author successfully introduces events surrounding a character that never appears.

Essay Topic 3

The Great American Desert and the repetitive story of Hank Monk and Horace Greeley both prove to be frustrating for the narrator.

1) Describe how the Great American Desert appears, why it is different than the narrator expects, and the difficulty his stage coach experiences there.

2) Explain what the story of Hank Monk and Horace Greeley is about, how it is presented to the travelers, and why it is the source of frustration for the narrator. Also, include what the intention of the story is meant to be and why it has the opposite effect for the narrator.

3) Describe the literary technique that Twain uses in order to convey the repetitiveness of the story and why he is effective in helping the reader to understand his objection to it.

(see the answer keys)

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