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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. How many schools has Leni gone to in the past four years, according to the narrator in Chapter 1?

2. What is the radio morning broadcast for people living in the bush without telephones or mail service that is described in Chapter 10?

3. Who is the first person to say he will take a job for the saloon rebuilding in Chapter 13?

4. What paperbook is Leni holding when she awakens in the backseat of the car in Chapter 3?

5. How long ago does Natalie Watkins say she came to Alaska?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Tom win over most of the Harlan clan regarding the saloon?

2. What are Leni's impressions of the settings in Chapters 3 and 4 as the Allbrights travel to their destination?

3. How is the theme of literature explored in Chapters 1 and 2?

4. What causes Geneva's death? What impact does her death have on the community?

5. Where does Matthew move in Chapter 10? Why?

6. What causes the conflict between Tom and Ernt after the wolf attack? How does this conflict impact Ernt?

7. Why does Ernt become violent after Geneva's funeral? What does he do?

8. Where is the community barbecue held in Chapter 5? How is this setting described?

9. How is Cora described when she is introduced in the beginning of the novel?

10. What are Leni's first impressions of Matthew?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss the members of the Harlan clan. Where do the Harlans live? What is their connection to the Allbrights? How do the members of the Harlan clan change in the course of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the mood and tone of The Great Alone. What mood and tone are established in the beginning of the novel? How do the mood and tone shift as the novel progresses? What are the mood and tone of the novel's ending?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and analyze the plot structure of The Great Alone. What is the inciting event that sets the plot into motion? Where does the rising action begin? Where is the climax? What information does the reader learn in the falling action and denouement?

(see the answer keys)

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