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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 are the shoes called that the protagonist wears in the narrative?
(a) Sneakers
(b) Clogs
(c) Moccasins
(d) Mukluks

2. What refers to the decisive moment that is of maximum intensity or is a major turning point in a literary plot?
(a) Foreshadowing
(b) Symbol
(c) Climax
(d) Metaphor

3. What color is a central motif in To Build a Fire?
(a) Green
(b) Red
(c) Blue
(d) White

4. The story, although not directly stated, is suggested to take place during what time period?
(a) 1940s
(b) 1850s
(c) 1890s
(d) 1920s

5. The protagonist thinks to himself in Part IV, “All a man had to do was” what “and he was all right”?
(a) Work with nature
(b) Keep his head
(c) Remember his training
(d) Pay attention

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. Which word from Part IV means situated at some distance away?

3. How is death described in the protagonist’s thoughts and fears in Part V?

4. What does the protagonist drop in the snow as he attempts to build his second fire in Part V?

5. According to the narrator in Part V, there had been no what for weeks?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the protagonist react when the fire is extinguished in Part V?

2. What conclusion does the protagonist come to when his fate appears sealed in Part VI?

3. How does the protagonist respond when the fear of death begins to overtake him in Part VI?

4. Why does the dog do as the protagonist fades from existence in Part VI?

5. How are the protagonist’s socks and shoes described as he tries to remove them in Part IV by the fire?

6. How is the protagonist able to separate the matches in Part V? How does he attempt to light a match once he does?

7. How does the theme of “survival” apply to Part IV of To Build a Fire?

8. How does the protagonist’s emotional state evolve as he works on building his second fire in Part V?

9. What idea comes to the protagonist after his second fire is a failure in Part V?

10. Why does the protagonist curse the dog in Part VI? What last effort does he make before accepting his fate?

(see the answer keys)

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