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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. Why can Benjamin and his father pass as brothers in Chapter V?
(a) Roger has aged well.
(b) They both appear to be 50 years old.
(c) Roger has aged very quickly.
(d) They dress very much alike.

2. What is the reason Benjamin joins the army?
(a) He is drafted.
(b) All of his friends are enlisting.
(c) He is encouraged by his father.
(d) He is unhappy at home with his wife.

3. in Chapter VIII, after returning downstairs from seeing himself in the mirror, how does Hildegarde seem?
(a) Worried.
(b) Annoyed.
(c) Happy.
(d) Angry.

4. Why does Hildegarde like men who are 50?
(a) They know how to appreciate a woman.
(b) She will surely outlive them.
(c) They are able to care for her financially.
(d) She is attracted to their gray hairs.

5. How had Benjamin once thought about his wife?
(a) He had once loved her intelligence and wit.
(b) He had once been attracted to her wealth and property.
(c) He had been so enamored with his wife and her good looks.
(d) He had once loved the debates and arguments they once had on current topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the problem with men who are 25, according to Hildegarde?

2. How does Benjamin feel while waiting to meet Hildegarde?

3. Much of Benjamin’s life had improved over the years, except what?

4. How does the whole of society, including the General, feel about Hildegarde marrying a man of 50?

5. Benjamin is the first man in Baltimore to own what?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Benjamin save his business over 600 nails per year?

2. How is Benjamin drawn in the Sunday papers?

3. What is significant about Benjamin turning 20?

4. How has Hildegarde changed over the years by Chapter 8?

5. How have Benjamin’s feelings about aging changed since his return from the war?

6. Why is the truth about Benjamin’s birth not circulated as much as the wild rumors?

7. How does General Moncrief try to convince Hildegarde that she is making a mistake marrying Benjamin?

8. How are Hildegarde’s friends wrong about their marriage?

9. How does Benjamin respond to seeing Hildegarde after three years away at war? Why?

10. What does Hildegard think about the odd way in which Benjamin ages?

(see the answer keys)

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