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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. Who is the college boy who helps out on the crab dumping trip?

2. What do Dick and his boys put in a fifty-five gallon drum?

3. Why does Dick go to Miss Perry's house in Chapter 29?

4. Where do Dick and Eddie Wormsley go to buy materials?

5. Where did Dick and his friend, Larry Parker, once take a fifty-five foot boat?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Dick justify the loss of his family's land by taking advantage of the relationships he has with wealthy people in the area?

2. What is the premise of SPARTINA?

3. How does Dick misread the message that Elsie sends when she tells him to leave her with the secret of their affair?

4. How does Joxer's bad luck change the immediate future for more than himself?

5. What is Dick's employment pattern and how does he plan to make money to finish his boat?

6. Explain Dick's internal conflict and how it relates to Parker's influence.

7. What are the differences between how May and Elsie view Dick's boat project?

8. How does Dick know that Elsie had been in the patrol boat the night before when he and Parker were trying to complete the drug deal?

9. How does the author use irony in the scenario on the dock with the cops and the drug-sniffing dog?

10. What are the two viable options for funding for Dick's boat at this point?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The author uses some important instances of foreshadowing in the story. Explain what foreshadowing is and cite at least two examples making sure to explain what makes each an example of foreshadowing.

Essay Topic 2

Describe the overall setting for the novel. Why does Casey use the setting he does? What is the time period of the story? How important is the time period to the attitudes and issues of the characters?

Essay Topic 3

Explain the significance of the book's title. What did the author mean by calling the novel SPARTINA? Cite an example to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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