View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why do the brothers have to be quiet in the mornings?
(a) Because Paps is asleep.
(b) Because Ma is asleep.
(c) Because the neighbors downstairs get angry if they hear noise.
(d) Because they have a new baby brother who is asleep.

2. When Paps and the brothers return home from Paps' job in Chapter 11, NIGHT WATCH, what are they shouting?
(a) "He crying?" (58).
(b) "Thump, thump, thump" (58).
(c) "Stop, stop" (59).
(d) "No More Crying! No More Crying!" (59).

3. Why is Ma worried about the brothers' bath in Chapter 10, YOU BETTER COME?
(a) Ma is stressed that the brothers are "sneaky," (47) and will play a trick on her.
(b) Ma is worried that the brothers will catch "pneumonia" (46) from the cold water.
(c) Ma is concerned about the brothers, because the brothers were "clean and fed and not afraid of growing up" (47).
(d) Ma is scared that the brothers "couldn't comprehend what was..." (46) happening.

4. What job does Paps finally get?
(a) The gas station.
(b) A security guard, the night watch.
(c) At the brewery, with Ma.
(d) An automotive shop.

5. What does the narrator believe Paps is really doing when he punishes his sons?
(a) Preparing them to be strong to fight other boys.
(b) Giving them an awakening.
(c) The narrator believes Paps is so drunk he does not know what he is doing.
(d) Taking his anger out on his sons instead of Ma.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is it unusual that Paps knows how to swim?

2. Why does Manny crawl into bed with his brother at the beginning of the story?

3. What does Old Man call the brothers as they eat the vegetables from his garden?

4. At the start of Chapter 9, TALK TO ME, what does Ma cut her fingertip on?

5. Why is Chapter 6 called US PROPER?

Short Essay Questions

1. What previous incident may have led Joel to ask a pregnant woman outside a drugstore if she was tricked into having a baby?

2. What are some examples at the start of Chapter 12, BIG-DICK TRUCK that demonstrate the financial situation of the narrator's family?

3. What kind of support does Lina provide to the narrator's family when she comes to visit?

4. How come Ma does not answer Paps' phone calls in Chapter 9, TALK TO ME?

5. After Ma asks the brothers if they think it is funny when men beat women, the narrator retreats to a window and looks into he sun and says, "I could not blind myself" (16). How does this statement contribute to the nature of the narrator's desires?

6. At the start of Chapter 10, YOU BETTER COME, how does Paps show an expression of regret when he returns to the family's home?

7. As the brothers hid in the bathtub, Paps and Ma pretend to not know and do not immediately come to find them. What deep fears does the narrator share about this lack of attention?

8. How do you know that the novel is being written in first-person?

9. What metaphorical significance can be determined by the fact that Ma and the narrator cannot swim and hang on to Paps in order to stay afloat?

10. How does Paps coerce Ma into not being so irate about about the new truck?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,289 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample