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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. On the morning after his guest spends the night in his cabin, what does Matt discover is missing?

2. What does the stranger ask for that Matt doesn't have?

3. What fruit does Matt find nearby?

4. How might one characterize Matt and Attean 's opinion of the finished weapon?

5. When Attean becomes angry and storms out of the cabin in Chapter 9, in what mood is Matt left?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why might Attean be so uninterested in learning to read and write the English language?

2. Despite Matt's gun being gone, what is happens in Chapter 4 that suggests that Matt is in good spirits?

3. What does Matt reveal in the narration that reveals how sensitive he is to being without a gun?

4. What does the last sentence of the chapter mean, "So he was not so quick-witted as he should have been when unexpectedly someone arrived"?

5. At the end of Chapter 10, Matt comments that Attean has smiled his first genuine smile. One must infer the reason for this smile. What is the reason behind this smile?

6. Why might one argue that Matt underestimates the danger the bees could cause him when he is planning to get some honey?

7. How does Matt intend to deal with his loneliness?

8. In what ways does Matt reveal his maturity in this first chapter?

9. Why does Matt blame himself for the bear's intrusion into his cabin?

10. Why is the absence of the rifle so terrible for Matt?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the role of women in Attean's village? What does Attean say about women that help the reader understand his view of women in a community?

Essay Topic 2

Attean does not seem to understand Matt's concept of land ownership and he dismisses treaties that his people had with the white men as worthless. How then does he come to have a different opinion of the markings that tribes put on trees to designate their hunting grounds. How is this concept different from the ownership Matt understands?

Essay Topic 3

At the beginning of The Sign of the Beaver, Matt is a child in his father's care. Although he has learned the lessons his father and his parents have taught him, discuss the immature side of Matt and give examples of his behaviors or early relations with people that suggest that he is still a child.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 778 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample