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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. Which of the following characters does Ike NOT visit with when he rides through the woods for the last time?

2. What is the reaction from the townsfolk when they hear the news that Old Ben is dead?

3. After leaving the Red Cross boat, what body of water do the convict and the refugee walk along?

4. How old is Ike when he moves in with McCaslin?

5. Which of the following adjectives does Ike use to describe the process of buying and selling land?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is Ash?

2. Why must the convict and Cajun man eventually part ways?

3. What does Ike claim is the curse that has landed in the South?

4. What happens when Ike runs into Boon one last time in the woods?

5. Who or what kills Major de Spain's colt?

6. What is the history of race-relations between Blacks and Whites in the South, as Ike understands it?

7. What happens in the story when the young boy turns sixteen?

8. How does Ike respond when he learns that he has inherited a large chunk of land from his father's will?

9. How does the Cajun man hunt alligators?

10. How do the hunters learn that Old Ben is not an indestructible force of nature?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The story "Spotted Horses" relies heavily on characteristics of tall-tales common in Southern humor writing. How do you see elements of tall-tales, or stories larger than life, in "Spotted Horses"? Do you think the humor of this type of writing is successful in the story, or does the humor take away from the moral message of the tale? Be sure to include at least two examples from the text that you believe helps strengthen your arguments.

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the novel, "The Old Man", Faulkner continues to hint at what he believes to be the dehumanization of men in prison. Choose two examples from the text that you believe best exemplify the dehumanization of prisoners. How does Faulkner use the examples of the two convicts as a way to explore this dehumanization? Finally, do you think Faulkner's message of dehumanization could effect change in current prisons today? Why or why not? Be sure to include at least two examples from the text that you believe help to strengthen your arguments.

Essay Topic 3

When Hipps comes to town with the spotted horses in the story of the same name, the one heckler he meets in the crowd in a man called Ratcliff. First, describe Ratcliff's character. What motivation does Ratcliff have to heckle Hipps when he comes to town? Then, describe what has happened in Ratcliff's history that made the Texan people not take his critique of Hipps seriously. Do you think the townsfolk should have listened to Ratcliff? Why or why not? Be sure to include at least two examples from the text to strengthen your argument.

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