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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. The narrator says in the opening of Chapter 4, "During the days, George was aware of a large group of people murmuring and flowing in and out of the room as if on tides." What literary device is used in this sentence?
(a) Literary allusion.
(b) Onomatopoeia.
(c) Personification.
(d) Simile.

2. Howard says the following in Chapter 3: "My mother opened the outside door and the light came in and carved every object in the kitchen into an ancient relic." What literary device is used in this sentence?
(a) Alliteration.
(b) Literary allusion.
(c) Simile.
(d) Personification.

3. What are the men wearing as they wait outside to take Howard's father away in Chapter 3?
(a) Blue coats and hats.
(b) Blue hospital uniforms.
(c) White coats and hats.
(d) Black coats and hats.

4. What book is cited with the description of the inner workings of a clock in Chapter 4?
(a) Alice in Wonderland.
(b) The Reasonable Horologist.
(c) The Old Man and the Sea.
(d) The Time of Finding Time.

5. Where does Howard stop and sleep on his way to visit George in 1953?
(a) Rhode Island.
(b) Connecticut.
(c) New Hampshire.
(d) Indiana.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Howard's mother cook for breakfast the morning after Howard's father has been taken away in Chapter 3?

2. What word used in Chapter 4 refers to incised carving, or ornamentation with a figure or design sunk below the surface?

3. What is the name of the middle-aged teller that George gives his payment to after repairing the clock for Mr. Billings in Chapter 4?

4. What is the only traditional item of clothing that the Indian wears who grew up living on an island in the lake, according to the narrator in Chapter 3?

5. Where in the house does Howard's mother dress his father before his father is taken away?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is implied in the conversation between George's wife and Charlie in Chapter 4, Part 1?

2. How did Howard's loss of his own father later influence his actions with his wife and children?

3. What is the significance of the title of Tinkers? Who does this term apply to in the novel?

4. What regret does Howard display regarding his father in the beginning of Chapter 3?

5. How is the disappearance of Reverend Crosby described in Chapter 3, Part 1? How does Howard's mother address the issue?

6. Where does Howard go to search for his father after Reverend Crosby's disappearance in Chapter 3?

7. What hallucinations does Howard experience in Tagg Pond in Chapter 3, Part 2?

8. How are George's finances described in Chapter 4, Part 1? Why does George concern himself with his finances?

9. How do George's memories of his father relate to the theme of rites of passage in Tinkers?

10. What alias does Howard Crosby take on after he leaves his family? Where does he go?

(see the answer keys)

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