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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 does Ann again realize she would not like as a career?

2. What does Ann discover when she goes to start the tractor?

3. What flowers does Ann pick and put in Loomis' bedroom?

4. What does Loomis say about the fertilizer?

5. Why does Ann decide to kill one of the older hens?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Ann at first amused by Mr. Loomis' actions but then becomes concerned?

2. What happens when Ann goes back to the farm to speak to Mr. Loomis and what does Ann realize?

3. Why does Mr. Loomis use the tractor to go to the store?

4. Where does Ann go in Chapter 12 and what does she find and do?

5. What routine do Ann and Mr. Loomis follow for the next ten days?

6. What does Ann discover about the tractor, and what does she do?

7. What puzzles Ann when she is reading poetry to Mr. Loomis?

8. What does Ann observe the next day as she is watching the house and what does she think about?

9. Why does Ann decide to ask Mr. Loomis questions and what happens as a result?

10. What does Mr. Loomis say he remembers while delirious?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the following:

1. Do you think Ann is wise to leave the valley? Do you think the implication is that her dream of teaching children is prophetic and that she will find others? Why or why not?

2. Would you have chosen the same route as Ann, i.e., leaving the valley. Why or why not?

3. How well do you think Ann will survive journeying out into a dangerous world?

4. Do you think Mr. Loomis redeems himself by pointing Ann in a likely direction to begin her journey? Give an in depth response.

Essay Topic 2

Samuel Taylor Coleridge once said that in reading fantastical or non-realistic literature, the reader must be willing to suspend his/her disbelief. Discuss the following:

1. In Chapter 6, Ann along with the reader learns that John Loomis walks from New York to somewhere in Pennsylvania through hundreds of miles of radiation-laden country, along with other poisons such as nerve gas. Is it possible to suspend one's disbelief in order to "play along" with the scenario the author sets up? Is it likely that in the 1960s, a plastic would have been invented that protected one from the effects of radiation exposure? Does this unlikely scenario make you more or less inclined to be engaged with the rest of the story? Explain your answers.

2. What are two other improbable situations in this book that one has to accept in order to engage with the story? Do you have trouble with either situation you name?

3. Are there any situations that stretch your imagination too far and makes you unable to accept the basic premise of the book? What is (are) it (they)?

4. Are you willing in your reading experiences to accept some unrealistic situations in order to become engaged in a book? What would be the purpose of doing so?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss one of the following:

1. Define irony in literary terms. What do you think is the purpose of irony? Discuss the irony of the situation that it appears the man could die from his radiation poisoning in a "safe" valley when he has avoided the same thing while walking through hundreds of miles of dangerous country. What other irony occurs in Z for Zachariah? Discuss two or three incidences of irony and whether they enhance your reading experience.

2. Define symbolism in literary terms. Discuss the use and meaning of five symbols you choose to analyze from Z for Zachariah. What do they symbolize? Is the symbolism obvious? Effective? Does the symbolism contribute to the enjoyment of reading?

3. Trace and analyze the use of foreshadowing throughout Z for Zachariah. List at least five things that occur later in the novel that are foreshadowed earlier in the novel. Does foreshadowing increase your motivation to complete a book? Why or why not?

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