View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do Thoreau's guests often do when they leave after dark?

2. What animals ate out of the hands of the woodsman?

3. What does Thoreau hear from town in his bean-field on gala days?

4. Which book are most men satisfied by reading or having read to them?

5. In total, how much does it cost for Thoreau to build his house?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Thoreau think is a 'surprising and memorable experience,' and why?

2. How does Thoreau describe the piece of land he lives on?

3. How does Thoreau know that visitors have dropped by while he is gone?

4. Why does Thoreau admire the French Canadian woodchopper?

5. Why does Thoreau love owls?

6. Why does Thoreau believe that Huckleberries lose their flavor before they go to market?

7. What reaction do the people of Concord have to Thoreau's lifestyle?

8. What does it mean to "live deliberately"?

9. How does Thoreau say he became more intimate with his beans?

10. What suggestions does Thoreau make to improve the state of culture in Concord?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay for or against vegetarianism. What are the impacts of your personal eating habits on your body, the environment, and the economy?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay explaining the pros and cons of living an isolated life. In what situations is it considered beneficial to be solitary, such as during meditation? In what situations is being isolated considered a punishment, such as during solitary confinement? Why does solitude have such different effects in certain situations?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay describing the process of food production. Where does our food come from? How does it get from the farm to the table? How much of our diet is grown locally and how much is grown internationally? How can our food production system be improved?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 874 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample