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. Who is the first person in the household staff to learn Wilbur and Eliza are smart?

2. To their parents, what is different about Wilbur and Eliza on their 15th birthday?

3. When Wilbur is old, what habit does he engage in while speaking or writing?

4. As Wilbur writes his memoir, what are Melody and Isadore building?

5. What formal document do Wilbur and Eliza disagree with?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Wilbur want to believe that Dr. Mott knew the truth about Wilbur and Eliza?

2. Why do the servants at the mansion believe it is haunted?

3. When their father seems conflicted about their intelligence, how do Wilbur and Eliza react?

4. Why does Kurt Vonnegut admire the performances of Laurel and Hardy?

5. What is Wilbur's mood at the beginning of Slapstick: Or, Lonesome No More!?

6. When Dr. Cordiner belittles Wilbur and Eliza in front of their mother, how does Letitia react?

7. When Wilbur is older, he reads reports written by Dr. Mott regarding Wilbur and Eliza. What type of information do these reports contain?

8. As a child, why was Wilbur worried about Dr. Mott?

9. When Wilbur and Eliza are separated, what do they do to cope?

10. Why is Dr. Mott important to Wilbur and Eliza?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When Wilbur gets old, Melody and Isadore are an important part of his life. After years of struggle with family, Wilbur's relationship with this new family seems loving and somewhat normal. Write an essay examining this relationship.

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the novel, the Chinese create inventions that could help Wilbur and Eliza resolve many of their physical and personal issues. These inventions are mentioned in passing. Select a moment in the text where one of these inventions are mentioned and analyze what this invention could resolve for Wilbur or Eliza.

Essay Topic 3

When disease hits the United States, the country experiences an apocalypse. Examine how the country returns to ways of ruling that are not advanced, such as creating territories ruled by Kings. Take a stand on whether or not this method is an improvement over the way things were, citing examples from the text.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 630 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample