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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 one phrase, describe how Solomon perceived William Ford to be of value to him.

2. What did Solomon find to be unusual during his stay at the hospital for the treatment of small pox?

3. How did Solomon describe the interaction among Eliza, Randall, and Emily at the time that they first saw each other?

4. Why did William Ford feel obligated to settle his brother's debt?

5. Why did Lawson take off in such high speed to find William Ford upon Chapin's request?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 6 of the book, how did slave dealer Theoplilus Freeman treat the slaves whom he owned?

2. In Chapter 5 of the story, how could Englishman John Manning be described in relation to Solomon?

3. In Chapter 7 of the book, how was Solomon's new master, John M. Tibeats different from William Ford?

4. How did Solomon prove to be a resourceful type of person for his master, William Ford in Chapter 7 of the book?

5. In Chapter 1 of his book, how was Author Solomon Northrup able to depict his early years in life as normal?

6. What was Solomon's first impression of Eliza in Chapter 3 of the book?

7. In Chapter 8 of the book, how did Mr. Chapin protect Solomon from being hurt or murdered by John Tibeats?

8. As Chapter 2 ends, and Chapter 3 begins, how did Solomon discover that he was being held in slavery?

9. In Chapter 2 of the book, how did Merrill Brown and Abram Hamilton persuade Solomon to travel to New York with them?

10. In Chapter 6 of the book, what did Freeman's customers do to examine his merchandise before making a purchase?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Instead of treating them with the dignity and respect that human beings deserved, the slave dealers in the book treated the slaves whom they intended to sell at various slave pens, quite similar to the way that ordinary shopkeepers treated the merchandise that they intended to sell in their stores.

What were some of the similarities that the slave dealers shared with shopkeepers as they prepared to conduct their respective sales? Were there any similarities between the slave dealers and shopkeepers as they conducted their respective sales? If there were, please describe them. How did the slaves feel about themselves in relation to the sales-related actions that the slave dealers would take as they went about conducting their business?

Essay Topic 2

In Twelve Years a Slave, Solomon was treated harshly and without respect by white men whom he came in contact with, either through master/slave-type interaction, or through a different type of circumstance or coincidence. On the other side of the coin however, it should be noted that Solomon was also treated well and with respect by white men whom he came in contact with, either through master/slave-type interaction, or through a different type of circumstance or coincidence. In fact, some even took action on his behalf, to restore his rights and privileges as a free man, and even as a slave.

Name two (2) white men who treated Solomon well and with respect. Describe the type of contact and interaction that they had with Solomon that qualified them to be acknowledged in a positive way in their dealings with him.

Also discuss the action that those men took toward helping Solomon restore his rights and privileges as a free man.

Essay Topic 3

When introduced to the reader, Eliza was an elegant and confident lady. She was well-dressed in silks and jewelry, envisioning a life in freedom for herself and her children; and could not understand why she was standing in Williams’ Slave Pen in Washington City. Within a short period of time however, a very changed and different Eliza came into view.

What were the changes that took place in Eliza? Detail the changes. Were there any events that took place in the life of Eliza that triggered those changes? If yes, detail the event(s). If no, detail any other factor(s) that caused Eliza to change.

(see the answer keys)

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