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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 is the story about that Attean tells Matt?

2. When Matt daydreams of being a hero to Attean, what does he imagine rescuing Attean from?

3. Approximately how long does it take Matt and Attean to reach Attean's village from Matt's cabin?

4. What do the rescuers use to prevent the dog from biting while they get it out of the trap?

5. When Matt wakes up after the celebration at Attean's village, what does Matt NOT see hanging or laying around?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Attean comes to say farewell, why does Matt to give Attean his father's watch and not the book?

2. After a day of hard play in the Indian village, Matt is physically sore but content. Explain these two apparently contradicting feelings.

3. How is Matt and Attean's use of each other's language symbolic of their relationship?

4. How does the celebration of the bear kill at Attean's village actually work to lessen friction over cultural differences?

5. Why is Matt "delighted" to know that Attean tells the story to his brothers?

6. When Matt comes upon the Attean's dog in the trap, he knows he is in the land of the turtle and should not tamper with anything there. Why does he knowingly go against the law that Attean taught him?

7. How does Matt's reaction to the cleanup being relegated to squaws indicate that he is more accepting of cultural differences?

8. What does Matt do at the end of Chapter 24 that suggests he has adequately prepared for winter?

9. As Matt misses his family and Christmas nears, how do his memories work for him?

10. What is Matt's reaction to Attean's explanation of his grandmother's hatred of white men?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

There are four instances in the book that deal with metal traps--early on there is Ben and his trapping for furs; there is Attean explaining how they cannot take the fox from a trap on another tribe's hunting ground; there is releasing the dog from the metal trap. How do these traps and rules around them illustrate the conflict between the white man and the Indian and each other's rules?

Essay Topic 2

Much of Matt and Attean's time is spent preparing to hunt, talking about hunting, or actually hunting. What is there about hunting that brings out all the aspects of friendship that must be dealt with before actually becoming friends?

Essay Topic 3

In the beginning of The Sign of the Beaver when Attean and Matt first meet, they are boys who are the same age and of very different cultures. In terms of their early relationship, that is until Attean becomes a man, compare and contrast these two young men.

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