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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 is NOT a reason a slave owner might sell a slave?

2. What was the title for a poor white who was hired to watch over the slaves as they worked and ensure they weren't lazy or try to run away?

3. Mammy referred to her slave days as what?

4. ____________ was the practice of slave owners which resulted in more children for next generation labor and an easy way to make a profit through sales.

5. Who said this in their account of slavery: "They never got nary a lick of labor and nary a red penny for any of them babies."?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was one of the big problems that arose after slaves were emancipated?

2. Describe the reaction of the anonymous white man who mentions being awakened by the overseer's horn in Chapter 3.

3. Discuss the ideas of freedom and death to the slaves.

4. Discuss the reasons why Indians and whites did not work out for the colonists for manual labor purposes.

5. What story did Frank Cooper tell and what was its importance?

6. In the Epilogue, what are Thomas Hall's views about the whites towards blacks?

7. What was the KKK and what did they do?

8. What usually happened with slave families during the slave trades?

9. What was the overall reaction from the slave owner community once slaves were freed?

10. In Chapter 2, Abraham Lincoln's election to presidency is mentioned. What was a result on the slave trading market?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Even after emancipation, slaves were not truly freed. They had freedom but not a free life. Discuss the difference of what it means to have freedom and what it means to have a free life. How did slaves have one and not the other? Or do you think they had both or none after the Civil War ended? What was life like for slaves immediately following the war and was it something that could have been prevented or carried out differently?

Essay Topic 2

There is a very long narrative about a slave named Paul in the novel. Give a brief summary about the story. Why is it included in the novel? Discuss what Paul symbolizes. What happens to Paul in the end? Discuss the reason for Paul's decision for his own life and how the narrator of Paul's story feels about it. Do you agree with Paul's decision? Why or why not? The narrator notes the iron collar around Paul's neck. What does it symbolize? The narrator also notes the three bells. What do they symbolize?

Essay Topic 3

The overall feeling slaves had about being enslaved was negative. Most of them did not feel happy in their lifestyles. However, there were some slaves who, in fact, did not mind being a slave. First, discuss the sentiment most slaves had about slavery and why. Were they entitled to these feelings? Then discuss why some slaves were complacent with their situation. Why might they not feel the bitterness or sadness that most other slaves felt? Include in your essay a description of house-servants and how they might tie in with this discussion about slaves' feelings about their lifestyles.

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