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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 is the name of the man who brings three carloads of supplies and 300 men to help the relief efforts?

2. Who entertains "Newspaper Row" by asking colleagues about restaurants?

3. How many people in Johnstown end up dying of typhoid?

4. In what year does Pitcairn's first interest in the dam come after it wrecks railroad property?

5. What day does the first case of typhoid come on?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the author describe the sightseers at the flood site?

2. Describe the donations made to Johnstown from other cities.

3. What is the nature of Pitcairn's second message to Pittsburgh?

4. How is the use of dynamite described in Chapter 8?

5. Describe what happens to Gertrude Quinn after she hides in a cupboard.

6. What efforts does Daniel Hartman Hastings try and make?

7. What reasons does the author suggest for Pitcairn joining the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club?

8. How are the first arrivals of supply carts described?

9. What is the nature of the stories spread by the city lieutenant in regards to the Hungarian immigrants?

10. What are the three destructive thrusts made by the wave as described in Chapter 5?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the author's use of perspective in the book. What methods did he use to tell this story? Was his use of perspective successful?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the role of the Hungarians' portrayal in the book. What reason did the author have for including these depictions in the book? What is telling of the townsfolk's treatment of the Hungarians after the flood?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the role of religion during the crisis. What role did religion play in the lives of the townsfolk of Johnstown? What might have been the author's purpose in including religious discussion in the text?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 624 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample