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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 wild bird is the family's first addition to their flock?

2. What does the family hear the sailors shouting just before the ship hits the rocks?

3. In Chapter 8, "The Pinnace," what instruction does the narrator give his sons on the Sunday at Falconhurst?

4. What does Ernest do that causes the narrator to criticize him for thinking he is "clever" (18)?

5. How does the family test whether fruits are safe to eat?

Short Essay Questions

1. Before they leave the ship, what does the narrator convince Elizabeth to do, and why does she object at first?

2. When Fritz shoots the margay, how does Ernest react, and what does the narrator tell him?

3. Describe the incident at the bridge in Chapter 7, "Bread," when the narrator and Fritz are surprised by Jack and Ernest.

4. In Chapter 7, "Bread," what is convenient about Jack's discovery of clay?

5. How does the family observe their first Sabbath together?

6. When the narrator wakes Ernest early, what is his reasoning, and how does Ernest respond?

7. When Fritz and the narrator feel lonely for other people, what does the narrator tell Fritz?

8. In Chapter 4, "Back to the Wreck," how does Elizabeth react when Jack and Ernest fail to shoot the birds when they are traveling through the tall grass?

9. In Chapter 8, "The Pinnace," what has Elizabeth been doing while most of the family works on the pinnace, and what does she want the family to do next?

10. In Chapter 7, "Bread," what happens as a result of Ernest's discovery of manioc root?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the characterizations of the family members that are offered in the book; which family members do you get to know the best and the least? Write an essay that offers a theory about why this is. Be sure to offer textual support for your claims. If you use historical or biographical evidence in your essay, cite your sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you explain how this novel reflects European knowledge about and attitudes toward non-European lands in the early nineteenth century. Be sure to use specific textual evidence to support your claims and to cite in MLA format any outside resources you use in your essay.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explore the sometimes conflicting attitudes the book expresses toward the usefulness of book learning. Does the narrator believe that the kind of education you can get from books is always valuable, or only valuable under certain circumstances? Use specific textual evidence to support your claims.

(see the answer keys)

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