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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. Why does the father decide to camp on the road?

2. How does the father get the son to enter the nice house?

3. Although they have no food and all they eat is snow, what does the father continue to tell the son?

4. What does the father want to do with the food that he and his son find in the nice house?

5. What does the father find in the nice house that he thinks could be poison?

Short Essay Questions

1. Recall an example from Chapter 31 that demonstrates how the father is dealing with the son growing up.

2. Describe one example from Chapters 36-40 that demonstrates how the father is becoming more reliant on the son's opinion.

3. Describe what the father and son find in Chapter 21 after the father breaks open a locked pantry door.

4. Give an example from Chapters 26-30 of where the author uses foreshadowing.

5. Analyze the son's reaction when, in Chapters 36-40, he realizes that the father is becoming more reliant on his opinion.

6. Explain what happens when the father and son find the old abandoned train -- analyze the father's actions.

7. Explain why the son returns to the fearful version of himself in Chapter 36, and use an example from the text.

8. Describe how the son shows his increasing influence on the father in Chapter 31.

9. Explain why the father gives the son a gun after they see the people walking towards the house.

10. Give an example from Chapters 21-25 that shows the father's mistrust.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The man and the boy isolate themselves in The Road by hiding in the woods, and they are constantly on the lookout for others while they travel. Analyze the theme of isolation in the novel, and explain how this isolation affects the son, citing examples from the text.

Essay Topic 2

Examine the theme of hope throughout the novel: hope for a better world, hope that there are still good people out there. Give some examples from the text that demonstrate the father and son's hope. How is the story ended with a hint of hope? How can hope for a better tomorrow encourage someone through a hard time?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze the theme of extinction or "the end of the world." How has near extinction caused humans to act in The Road? Would people really react this way? What are signs that the earth has been mistreated? Are there any signs that the earth is healing itself?

(see the answer keys)

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