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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is NOT an explanation for Dimmesdale's "red stigma"?
(a) Chillingworth did it.
(b) The minister did it to himself.
(c) Hester put it there.
(d) God did it.

2. What facial expression of Chillingworth displays his true malice, which the narrator calls "his blackness" in Chapter 14?
(a) A grimace.
(b) A smile.
(c) A shrug.
(d) A wink.

3. With what kind of natural objects has Pearl decorated herself in Chapter 18?
(a) Sand and driftwood.
(b) Wildflowers.
(c) Maple leaves.
(d) Seashells.

4. Dimmesdale claims that his scarlet letter burns how?
(a) In secret.
(b) In God's eyes.
(c) On his soul.
(d) On the inside.

5. What marks particular attendants of the holiday as members of their forest settlements?
(a) Their deer-skin clothing.
(b) Their rough speech.
(c) Their long hair.
(d) Their scarlet F's.

6. Whom does Hester decide to seek out for a meeting at the end of Chapter 13?
(a) Her confessor.
(b) Her lover.
(c) Her daughter.
(d) Her (former) husband.

7. What is the title of Chapter 18?
(a) An Ectasy of Light.
(b) A River of Tears.
(c) A Flood of Sunshine.
(d) A Flood of Brightness.

8. Where does Dimmesdale imagine a "scarlet token?"
(a) On Hester.
(b) On his chest.
(c) On his forehead.
(d) On Pearl.

9. What describes Dimmesdale's hand, when Hester touches it?
(a) "Cold as ice. "
(b) "Frozen."
(c) "Clammy."
(d) "Chill as death."

10. Why is Dimmesdale at the town center Chapter 12?
(a) To shame Hester.
(b) To stand side by side with Hester.
(c) To trick Chillingworth.
(d) To proclaim his guilt in public.

11. How many years have passed so far in this novel, in Chapter 13?
(a) Less than one.
(b) Eleven.
(c) Three.
(d) Seven.

12. What suggests that Pearl will have a child of her own at the end of the novel?
(a) Pearl has gotten married quickly.
(b) Hester calls herself "Grandma Hester."
(c) Pearl's stomach is large.
(d) Hester is sewing infant clothes.

13. In what month does this "obscure night" take place in Chapter 12?
(a) August.
(b) May.
(c) November.
(d) January.

14. According to the narrator, which of the following has NOT been one of Hester's "teachers"?
(a) Guilt.
(b) Despair.
(c) Shame.
(d) Solitude.

15. What, according to many of the townspeople who have come to appreciate Hester, should the A stand for?
(a) Able.
(b) Addled.
(c) Aloof.
(d) Angel.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who, in the procession, "exhibited such energy as was seen in the gait and air"?

2. What does Hester mean when she says "Thou shalt not go alone" at the end of Chapter 17?

3. Who retrieves the object that Hester flings away?

4. Who is said to ride "with Satan through the air?"

5. What is the holiday referred to in the title of Chapter 21?

(see the answer keys)

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