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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. In Chapter 8, who is the first person elected to be group leader?

2. What aspect of the students' newly formed government mirrors racism and discrimination in America?

3. After agreeing to cooperate with Grant in Chapter 10, Rod asks to lead a search party to find what?

4. How much time off from guard duty does Grant give to Bob in Chapter 10 because he is newly married?

5. In Chapter 13, what injury is suffered by Mick?

Short Essay Questions

1. The first part of Chapter 11 is told from whose point of view?

2. How does Grant use the incident between Rod and Jock in Chapter 8 to overthrow Rod from his leadership position?

3. Early in Chapter 8, how is Jack injured?

4. What demands does Rod make of Grant in Chapter 10, before agreeing to serve as his city manager?

5. Where does Rod think the students should move their colony?

6. Why are Rod and Roy slow to return from their expedition?

7. What do Rod and Roy discover, as far downstream as they can go?

8. When rescuers arrive, who is the only student who refuses to return home?

9. Why do Bob and Carmen ask to wait a day when their friends consider abandoning Grant's rule and forming a new colony?

10. Who finally convinces Rod to return home to Earth?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Near the end of the novel when officials from Terra arrive to rescue the students, why is Rod the only one who wishes to stay on the new planet? Why are the other students so anxious to leave, even though many had previously stated that they would never want to return home? What irresistible attractions draw them home, that could never be replicated in Cowpertown?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the family dynamics of the Walker family, as depicted early in the novel. Why do Rod's parents conceal from him the fact that Rod's father is terminally ill and the fact that both of Rod's parents plan to be frozen for twenty years in the hope that a cure will be found? How do the family dynamics change by the final chapter, as a result of Rod's new life experiences and the passage of time?

Essay Topic 3

What is the primary role of Jimmy in the novel? Is his comic relief a comfort to the other students? How does the character of Jimmy grow from the beginning of the novel, when he nearly skips the final survival exam due to fear, to the end of the novel, when he is a solid husband and father?

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