View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The narrator says that the timing for Tom's business is propitious. What kind of timing would this be?
(a) Too late to make a difference.
(b) In advance of need.
(c) Favorable.
(d) Unlucky.

2. Why is Tom happy to see the apron?
(a) He thinks that his wife left it as a sign to him.
(b) He believes that it contains valuable items.
(c) He thinks it means his wife may be nearby.
(d) He believes that it means his wife is dead.

3. What tradition does Tom say should be revived?
(a) Public hangings.
(b) The persecution of other religious sects.
(c) War with Native tribes.
(d) The witch trials.

4. What makes the item on Tom's desk ironic?
(a) Tom's superstition.
(b) The nature of Tom's enemy.
(c) The use of the item later in the story.
(d) Tom's job.

5. Why does Tom Walker originally go into the swamp?
(a) He is trying to take a shortcut home.
(b) He is lost.
(c) He is looking for his wife.
(d) He has heard a rumor about the pirate treasure.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Tom notice about the tallest trees in the swamp?

2. Why does the devil say that he has a right to cut wood on this land?

3. What word does the narrator use twice to describe the situation of Tom's clients?

4. What does Tom's wife take with her when she goes into the swamp for the second time?

5. Who is said to have been present when the treasure was buried?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is the death of Absolom Crowninshield announced as the death of a great man in Israel when he actually died in Massachusetts?

2. How does Tom's wife react to his news, and what is his response to her?

3. Describe the appearance of the devil in this story.

4. What is similar about Tom's fancy house and his religious behavior?

5. What does Tom's wife do as a result of his refusal to make a deal with the devil, and what is the outcome?

6. What are Tom Walker's first house and property like?

7. What does Tom believe happened to his wife, and why, and how does he feel about it?

8. What does Tom do with his money and what does it show about his personality?

9. Before Tom and the devil part, how does the devil seal his side of the bargain and what does this allude to?

10. Explain how Tom develops into a religious hypocrite.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 960 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample