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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. What color stripe is on the mainsail of the ship Dick sails on?

2. What color is Abby's hair?

3. How does the cook's disposition change after Dick arrives?

4. Where does Bernie put Havey after the dog's fight with Whittington?

5. What trait gives Caroaggio his name?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the dream Dick Whittington has about London?

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

3. How did Will Price get his scar?

4. What trouble does Ben have with the first word he learns?

5. What horse operation does Bernie describe seeing?

6. How does Lady stay safe from the rats?

7. What reaction does the cook have when Dick faints at her door?

8. How does Ben react when Gran gives him something to read?

9. What does the man who sells Dick Whittington his cat look like?

10. How does Whittington take his bath?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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?

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 conflict in the novel, and how conflicts are resolved.

1) What kinds of conflicts exist between the characters in the novel, such as the conflict between the rats and the barn animals, and between Havey and the Lady? Why do these conflicts exist and how are they resolved?

2) What kinds of internal conflicts exist for the characters? How is Ben conflicted about learning to read? How does he struggle with himself to do what he needs to do to learn? How does Ben resolve his conflict?

3) What conflicts does Dick Whittington face? How are they resolved?

(see the answer keys)

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