View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What are the Goshoot Indians hurting, according to the narrator?

2. What two bodies of water do the streams at the top of the South Pass empty into?

3. How do the other travelers react to Bemis' story about the buffalo that chased him?

4. How does Twain describe the book in the Prefatory?

5. When the party reaches Esmeralda, how much do they conclude that the claims they have are worth?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. As stated in the Prefatory, what is Twain's intention in writing Roughing It?

3. What is the writing style of Mark Twain that is established in the Prefatory?

4. How does Slade die and what point does the narrator make about it?

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

6. What skills does Captain John Nye have, and how does he help the narrator and his party?

7. What is the reality of the alkali desert as the narrator experiences it after leaving Salt Lake City?

8. What warning is the narrator and his party given as they approach the Honey Lake Smith's Inn, and what is their response?

9. What is the story of Bemis and the buffalo, and how do the other passengers respond to it?

10. How do the members of the narrator's mining party get lost in Chapter XXXII, and what happens with their attempts to start a fire?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast the narrator's trip on the stage coach to the trip made by a reporter after the railroad is completed. Also, include the point the author is making with the comparison and why he chooses to contrast his trip with a future one.

Essay Topic 2

The beginning of the narrator's trip is a preview of the events that lie ahead for him as well as the overall tone of the book.

1) Describe the events that cause the narrator to travel to the West, including the anticipated length of the trip.

2) Explain the limitations of space and amenities on the mail coach that the narrator rides on and how that parallels one of the story's themes.

3) Describe some of the ironic situations or setbacks that the narrator encounters in the initial chapters and how they establish the author's tone in the book.

Essay Topic 3

Describe the court case between Hyde and Morgan. Include the events leading up to the case and each side's arguments. Also, explain the significance of the referee, his decision, and the message the narrator is delivering with the outcome of the case.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,104 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample