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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. What did Olmsted ask the people he met on his travels?

2. What does Holmes not want to become when he dies?

3. What is the role of the retrenchment committee?

4. Where does Mrs. Pitezel learn that her children's bodies have been discovered?

5. How long does the first turn of the Ferris wheel take?

Short Essay Questions

1. What eventually happens to Holmes?

2. What does Geyer find out about the children in Indianapolis?

3. How does Holmes kill Anna?

4. What does McKim write in his letter in the Departures chapter?

5. What do Minnie and Anna see at the fair?

6. Describe the first test runs with the Ferris Wheel.

7. Describe the Spanish Royal Emissary's visit to Chicago.

8. What happens to Millet in the Aboard the Olympic chapter?

9. In what way can the characters of Burnham and Holmes be compared?

10. What eventually happens to Burnham and his wife?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Identify the main themes of the story. Why do you think these themes are so important to the story? How does Larson use character and setting to express these themes?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the depression of 1893.

1) How bad was the 1893 depression? How long did it last?

2) How did Chicago made such a success of the Exposition when there was a depression going on?

3) How could the authorities justify spending so much money on one event when people were struggling?

Essay Topic 3

Choose one of the characters in the book and examine his/her real life. How does Larson represent him/her in the novel? Is this an accurate representation of the character?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 704 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample