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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which word from Part IV means to be grateful or thankful?
(a) Appreciate
(b) Wistful
(c) Manipulation
(d) Success

2. The protagonist agitates the tree above him every time he does what in Part V?
(a) Lays against the trunk
(b) Pulls a twig
(c) Yells at the dog
(d) Saws off a branch

3. What is portrayed as the antagonist in To Build a Fire?
(a) Nature
(b) Fire
(c) The dog
(d) The old-timer

4. The narrator states in Part IV, “Well, here he was; he had had the accident; he was alone; and he had” what?
(a) Been lucky
(b) Saved himself
(c) Triumphed over nature
(d) Kept his composure

5. Who had told the protagonist about the dangers of being wet in such cold temperatures?
(a) The priest
(b) The ship captain
(c) The old-timer
(d) The gold miner

6. What other word does the narrator use for sulphur in Part V?
(a) Sparkstone
(b) Keystone
(c) Brimstone
(d) Thermastone

7. To Build a Fireis considered to be a reflection of Jack London’s own experiences where?
(a) The Northwestern Yukon Territory
(b) Nova Scotia
(c) Norway
(d) Northern Alaska

8. What thought puts the protagonist in a panic as he tries to light his second fire in Part V?
(a) He is losing his vision
(b) His feet are freezing
(c) The dog will eat him
(d) He is hearing voices

9. What does the fire symbolize to the protagonist in Part V?
(a) God
(b) Comfort
(c) Triumph
(d) Life

10. Which word from Part V refers to any of the main branches of a tree?
(a) Trunk
(b) Twig
(c) Bough
(d) Root

11. The popularized second version of To Build a Firewas published in what year?
(a) 1927
(b) 1899
(c) 1908
(d) 1880

12. According to the narrator in Part V, there had been no what for weeks?
(a) Wind
(b) Animals
(c) Clouds
(d) Rain

13. Which word from Part IV means inanimate or dead?
(a) Lifeless
(b) Jovial
(c) Regal
(d) Meditation

14. When the protagonist falls a second time and the dog sits in front of him, how does the protagonist feel about the “warmth and security of the animal” in Part VI?
(a) Sickened
(b) Content
(c) Jealous
(d) Angered

15. The protagonist begins by feeding the fire with twigs the size of what in Part IV?
(a) His finger
(b) His arm
(c) A sewing needle
(d) A pencil

Short Answer Questions

1. The man is described as speaking in what way to the dog in Part V, meaning leaving no opportunity for denial or refusal?

2. According to the narrator in Part IV, the “wires were pretty well down between him and his” what?

3. The protagonist thinks to himself in Part IV, “Any man who was a man could” do what?

4. The protagonist’s mistake is having built his fire under what, in Part V?

5. The protagonist pictures the boys doing what the next day as he drifts into death in Part VI?

(see the answer keys)

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