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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Dimmesdale's voice is compared to what natural phenomenon in Chapter 23?
(a) Patter of raindrops on the roof.
(b) Swelling waves of the sea.
(c) Twisting branches of a dead oak.
(d) Surging wind of the coast.

2. Who is the "grim, ugly-eyed old man" who recognizes Pearl?
(a) The old governor.
(b) Hester's former husband.
(c) The old jailer.
(d) Her father.

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

4. What does Chillingworth say in Chapter 14 the town council has been debating?
(a) Whether to take away the scarlet letter.
(b) Whether to arrest Hester again.
(c) Whether to exile Hester from Boston.
(d) Whether to take away Pearl from Hester.

5. Which of the following is NOT used by the narrator to describe Pearl in Chapter 21?
(a) Gem-like.
(b) Dour.
(c) Bird-like.
(d) Effervescent.

Short Answer Questions

1. Whom does Dimmesdale call up to join him in front of everyone?

2. How many years have passed so far in this novel, in Chapter 13?

3. According to Dimmesdale, Chillingworth's revenge has been "____ than [his] sin"?

4. What does Pearl do with sea weed?

5. This group in the procession referred to in the title of Chapter 22 was showing "a stamp of majesty that made the warrior's haughty stride look vulgar"?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 13, Hawthorne says that some people would think that Hester's scarlet letter stands for "Able." Why?

2. Why does Hester's heart sink when she sees Dimmesdale in the procession during the public holiday?

3. What does Pearl do with the seaweed she finds, and what does it show about her as a character?

4. Why will Hester and Dimmesdale have to head back to Europe, instead of moving somewhere more rural or remote?

5. Why does Chillingworth attempt to stop Hester and Pearl from joining Dimmesdale on the scaffold?

6. Describe the three suspected causes of the "A" carved into Dimmesdale's chest.

7. Where does Dimmesdale go at the beginning of Chapter 12, and why?

8. In Chapter 16, Hester changes her story to Pearl about the significance of the scarlet letter. What does she say about the letter in Chapter 16?

9. Why, in Chapter 18, does Hester remove the scarlet letter and fling it into a brook?

10. When Hester calls for Pearl to come to her in Chapter 19, Pearl will not move from her spot in the woods. What prevents her from going to her mother?

(see the answer keys)

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