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. What does Jesse give Chappy Foote as he leaves the train he robs on Independence Hill?

2. Who is Annie?

3. What activity do Jesse and Bob do with Jesse's son?

4. Who is Zee named after?

5. Who kills Ed Cummins?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Jesse's attitude, when the novel opens, toward smoking and drinking?

2. Who is Cole Younger?

3. What happens when the detectives throw a bomb into Jesse's mother's house, thinking he is hiding there?

4. Who do Union soldiers try to beat information out of during the Civil War?

5. Why is Jesse's son known as Tim?

6. What is Ed Miller nervous about when Jesse comes to visit him at his home?

7. What does Jesse offer to do before leaving Chappy Foote's train after robbing it -- and how does Chappy respond to the offer?

8. What "gift" does Jesse give Chappy Foote as he is leaving the train after robbing it?

9. How is John Whicher killed?

10. What wounds does Jesse have when he is first introduced into the text?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss at least 3 challenges an author, like Hansen, faces when writing historical fiction. Make sure to use at least 3 examples from "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" to support your position.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss at least 3 literary devices that Hansen uses to help the reader better understand at least one character of your choosing. Use direct quotations and/or examples from the text to support your position.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how Hansen portrays authority figures in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," making sure to use at least 3 specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 684 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample