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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. What kind of liquor does Howard keep a few bottles of in his secret drawer as a tradesman?
(a) Gin.
(b) Whiskey.
(c) Rum.
(d) Vodka.

2. Where does the narrator describe seeing a clock "that had the likeness of a great oak tree wrought in iron and brass around its dial" in Chapter 1?
(a) Eastern Bohemia.
(b) Central China.
(c) Western Georgia.
(d) Northern Ireland.

3. What does George's collapsing house symbolize in the novel?
(a) The disintegration of George's family.
(b) The government.
(c) George's wife.
(d) George's body.

4. The drowned child that Howard fishes from a creek is the daughter of what widow?
(a) Petrie.
(b) Jameson.
(c) Anderson.
(d) La Rose.

5. What natural phenomenon does Howard compare his seizures to in Chapter 1?
(a) Hailstorms.
(b) Thunder.
(c) Lightning.
(d) Volcanoes.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does George wrap the dead mouse with in Chapter 2?

2. What word is used in Chapter 1 to refer to angels?

3. When is the autograph dated in the novel that Howard receives as a gift from the hermit in Chapter 1?

4. What game do Howard and George play on the porch when George is a child in Chapter 2?

5. Who agrees to shave George in Chapter 1?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the natural phenomenon of lightning used as a metaphor in Chapter 1?

2. How does the setting change in Chapter 1 when George's family leaves him to prepare lunch?

3. How does Howard find George after he's run away from home in Chapter 2, Part 2? What are his thoughts upon finding his son?

4. What does George discover in his mother's pamphlet in Chapter 2, Part 2? How does she respond when she finds him reading it?

5. How would you describe Kathleen's perspective in the story? What are Kathleen's feelings about her family?

6. How would you describe George's relationship to animals and nature based upon his actions in Chapter 2?

7. How is Kathleen's behavior described when Howard Crosby arrives home late after having a seizure in Chapter 1, Part 2?

8. How would you describe the differences between George and Howard Crosby in terms of their successes in life?

9. What memories of George's are described "one hundred and sixty-eight hours" before George's death in Chapter 1?

10. How is George's condition described in the beginning of Chapter 1? Where is George located, and what does he ask for when he first awakens?

(see the answer keys)

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