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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. How does the Old One react when three young rats laugh at Whittington?

2. What do Ben, Bernie, and Abby use to get hot water down to the barn when the road is blocked with snow?

3. While trying to read a psalm, what does Ben pronounce instead of "death"?

4. What does the stranger with the gold coin give to Dick?

5. Where is Bernie when the farmer drops the black hen off at the gas station?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Whittington slip off and do immediately after the first part of his story about Dick Whittington?

2. How does the black hen act when Bernie examines her?

3. What worries Abby about the chickens' spring eating habits?

4. What happens that causes Dick Whittington's cat to vow vengeance on a rat?

5. How does Whittington take his bath?

6. What kind of reputation does Dick get at the London docks?

7. What happened to Abby and Ben's parents?

8. What is Whittington and the Lady's plan to stop Havey from always chasing the duck?

9. How does the captain react to Dick Whittington's cat?

10. How do Abby and Ben change after the horses arrive?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The central characters of the novel are animals. Discuss this aspect of the story.

1) How are the animal characters in the novel similar to human beings? How are they non-human?

2) Why does the author choose talking animals as central characters? What do these animals show the reader about humanity and life as a human?

3) How is Dick Whittington's cat portrayed differently than the other animal characters? Why?

Essay Topic 2

The novel contains death and violence, which are a part of life. Discuss the death and violence in the novel.

1) Why is Whittington violent toward rats and other cats? How is his violent nature as a predator portrayed in the novel? What is its significance? How is his violence controlled?

2) What other elements of violence are there in the natural world, such as the violence of the rats, the hawks, and Havey? What causes this violence? How is it a part of life? Should or could it be eliminated?

3) How does Ben act out violently in the novel? What causes his violence? How is it different from the violence of the natural world?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the settings in the novel.

1) What role does the barn play as a setting in the novel? How does the setting of the barn affect the story and the reader's experience?

2) What role does London play as a setting in the novel? How is the time and place of Dick Whittington's life contrasted with the barn?

3) What other settings affect the novel, such as exotic Tripoli, and the reading program classroom?

(see the answer keys)

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