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. How many giant sea turtles does the group catch on April 11 in Agiabampo?
(a) One.
(b) Two.
(c) None.
(d) Three.

2. Why does everyone feel a bit gloomy on their return to the Gulf?
(a) Some want to stay while some are eager to get to the end.
(b) They all want to stay for one more week at sea.
(c) One of their crew members dies.
(d) They feel that the expedition is a failure.

3. Why is the tide chart no longer usable?
(a) Because it gets wet when Tex forgot to bring down the covers on a particularly windy day.
(b) Because it takes a long time for the tide to run up into the Sea of Cortez and they were not able to revise the chart with their short stops in each place.
(c) Because they have been at sea for more than four weeks, after which any tide cart becomes unusable.
(d) Because Tiny looses it in one betting game he had in the last town they stopped by.

4. What does the author tell us about the camera that they brought in the expedition?
(a) They realize that they should have bought an underwater camera to be able to take pictures of marine life in the water.
(b) They have been having trouble all along with the camera and they finally decided to figure out what to do with it.
(c) They wish they bought several batteries, because the batteries ran out even before they were halfway on the trip.
(d) They are so grateful that they brought the camera with them, as it has captured so many photographs of the expedition.

5. What does the expedition party do at the island of Tiburon?
(a) Attend mass at the island of Tiburon.
(b) Collect specimens on a reef and a rocky shoreline.
(c) Visit the marine museum at the island of Tiburon.
(d) Talk to the priest of the island of Tiburon.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does everyone decide to put Tex on a diet?

2. What is the expedition party's last collecting stop?

3. How do the ladies of Laredo react to the expedition party?

4. Which statement best describes the expedition team's reaction on the topic of going home?

5. How does the morning of March 31 affect the activities of the expedition party?

Short Essay Questions

1. Steinbeck and Ricketts willingly accept the offer to go on a big sheep-hunting expedition even though it is apparent that they do not have the desires to hunt any creature. Give a probable explanation as to why the two readily agreed to the invitation in the first place.

2. Describe the strange experience the group has with the Americans and the Mexicans they encounter in Angeles Bay.

3. Describe the expedition party's experience with their camera equipment. What happens with the equipment and what resolutions are derived from their experience?

4. In Marcial Point around noon on Easter Sunday, Steinbeck and Ricketts manage to catch a big, beautiful lobster despite the difficulties they have encountered. How do you think Steinbeck and Ricketts managed to catch this lobster? Speculate on the efforts of the team.

5. Explain Steinbeck's thoughts on the wastage of food witnesses together with Ricketts on the Japanese dredge boats.

6. Discuss the theories and examples presented by members of the expedition team on how persistence of beliefs of mind can overcome actual reality.

7. Briefly explain Steinbeck's feelings towards the whole expedition. Does he feel that the expedition has taught them anything, and is there any particular valuable lesson they have acquired from the trip, apart from scientific learnings?

8. Describe how life in the Western Flyer becomes by the end of March. How does it chang compared when they first sailed to sea?

9. At the port city of Laredo, the members of the expedition team serve as merriment to the local girls. Speculate on the reasons on why this is so and give probable explanations to this happening.

10. How do the members of the expedition party pass the night of March 29? What discussions are happening and what are the revelations of this night?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,685 words (approx. 6 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample