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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Ishmael Chambers suffers from
(a) Denervation of the limb
(b) A prostate condition
(c) Low self-esteem
(d) Phantom limb pain

2. Hatsue hoped that having children would help Kabuo
(a) Become more focused on something besides himself
(b) Become a better husband and son
(c) Become more open and giving
(d) Become less obsessed with his dream of farming

3. As a husband, Carl Heine, Jr. was
(a) Gentle and dependable
(b) Cold and distant
(c) Indifferent
(d) Somewhat abusive

4. His arm, as well as Hatsue, have been taken from Ishmael because
(a) Of his wish to be whole again and have Hatsue
(b) Of his faith in God, like his mother's
(c) He does not believe in a higher power of good
(d) History is whimsical and immune to private yearnings

5. What is now discovered about Carl's boat that the Sheriff missed earlier?
(a) An empty knife sheath
(b) Another gaff with no blood
(c) Cut lashings and blood on the mast and spar pole
(d) Blood on the coffee cup and floor

Short Answer Questions

1. At the trial, Susan Marie's demeanor inspires

2. Jury instructions from the trial judge are intended to

3. Ishmael had always pretended that his visits to his mother's home

4. Kabuo visited Carl Heine to discuss buying back his family's property

5. With fog as thick as it was on the night that Carl Heine died, it was easy to

Short Essay Questions

1. What scenario has prosecutor, Alvin Hooks, cooked up to try to bolster his case against Kabuo?

2. Describe what Ishmael discovered in the Coast Guard radioman's notes.

3. The idea of inclement weather has been woven throughout the story, including the heavy snowfall that has caused problems during the trial of Kabuo Miyamoto. What inspires Ishmael's decision to check with the coast guard about weather conditions at the time of Carl Heine's demise?

4. Why does Ishmael not take his information from the coast guard directly to Judge Fielding as he figures he father would have done?

5. What, ultimately, could have been Carl Heine's greatest failing, according to Ishmael?

6. What does Guterson mean when he says that, "...the prosecutor, knew well the value of a Susan Marie Heine."

7. Why does the author refer more than once to the smell of snow?

8. What is Alvin Hooks' motivation in trying to convict Kabuo? How would winning the case benefit Nels Gudmundsson?

9. Learning that Carl has kept Kabuo's fishing rod all these years suggests that Kabuo might be telling the truth? Explain this.

10. Hooks makes a significant misjudgment in his closing argument as he paints a scenario of Kabuo luring Carl Heine in by faking an emergency. Discuss his mistakes.

(see the answer keys)

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