View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the wedding gift Ninian has brought Abe?
(a) A silver box of fine cigars.
(b) A slave.
(c) A stovepipe hat that will become Lincon's signature.
(d) A fine, silver-headed cane.

2. What is Josh Speed's request to the Greens as he departs at the end of Act 1, Scene 3?
(a) He asks them to keep Lincoln with them and not let him out of their sight.
(b) He wants them to take copious notes about Lincoln's mood.
(c) He requests they accompany Lincoln to Springfield for opening of the Legislature.
(d) He asks them to call a physician to treat Lincoln's stress.

3. What are three things Lincoln likes about Ann Rutledge?
(a) She's sensible, brave and good-looking.
(b) She's good-looking, sensible and wants a large family.
(c) She's smart, pretty and owns property.
(d) She's brave, pretty and a political asset.

4. What characteristics make Mary Todd a good catch in the eyes of most people?
(a) She speaks French, cooks Italian and comes from a line of English royalty.
(b) She's smart, cultivated and the daughter of a bank president.
(c) She is exceedingly beautiful and has a shy, retiring demeanor.
(d) She's highly educated and would make a good Secretary of State.

5. What is the mood of the speech Lincoln is asked to read in the first scene?
(a) Infinitive.
(b) Subjunctive.
(c) Indicative.
(d) Potential.

6. What is the local gossip in New Salem about Ann Rutledge?
(a) She is in line for a job as the town's teacher.
(b) She has been jilted by her fiance, who left town.
(c) She is secretly a witch.
(d) She is in love with Abe Lincoln.

7. Who is Billy Herndon?
(a) The illegitimate son of Josh Speed.
(b) A client of Lincoln's who is accused of murder.
(c) The boy who delivers mid-afternoon coffee and lottery tickets.
(d) A law clerk in Lincoln's office.

8. What opinion does Elizabeth Edwards have of Abe Lincoln?
(a) Compared to other men, he would be at the top of her list of potential husbands.
(b) She calls him elegant, cultivated and likely to be rich some day soon.
(c) She thinks he's divinely good-looking, but shiftless.
(d) She says he has a simple soul and is a most amiable creature, but not suitable as a husband.

9. How does Mary Todd characterize the life her sister and brother-in-law have chosen?
(a) She calls them reckless and irresponsible because they have invested in too many rental properties.
(b) She recognizes their lives are adventurous, with no boundaries.
(c) She says they live in a house with fences, not to keep others out, but to keep themselves from escaping their own narrow lives.
(d) She says they live fearful lives, surrounded by fences designed to keep the world at arm's length.

10. In Scene 2, Act 4, what office is Lincoln seeking?
(a) President of the United States.
(b) Springfield's combined office of dogcatcher and postmaster.
(c) President of the Springfield School Board.
(d) Member of the Electoral College.

11. What is the "good joke" Lincoln plans to tell Bowling Green at the end of Act 1, Scene 2 in the Rutledge Tavern?
(a) That he will be a candidate for the assembly of the State of Illinois.
(b) That a chicken crossed the road to get to the other side.
(c) That Ann Rutledge has run off to marry Josh Speed.
(d) That Jack Armstrong, of the Clancy Groves boys, will run for the State Assembly.

12. Why does Lincoln return to New Salem in Act 1, Scene 3?
(a) Ann Rutledge is sick.
(b) Seth Gale summoned him with a letter.
(c) He has been kicked out of Springfiled for being drunk in public.
(d) The Greens have asked him to mediate in their divorce.

13. Billy Herndon, Lincoln's law clerk, arrives in Act 2, Scene 6. What is his condition?
(a) He's drunk, as usual.
(b) He's debilitated by swamp fever.
(c) He's suffering from an early case of swine flu.
(d) He has quit drinking and is sober.

14. Why does Bowling Green call Lincoln "an artful dodger" in Act 2, Scene 4?
(a) Lincoln manages to slip away from debt collectors just when they are closing in on him.
(b) Lincoln has left a number of women at the altar.
(c) Lincoln continually evades running for any office that would require him to take a public stand on slavery.
(d) Lincoln is an accomplished amateur boxer who never takes a blow to the chin.

15. What happens at the end of Act 2, Scene 4 that proves Lincoln's claim that he is a social success?
(a) Mary Todd sends Lincoln a thank-you note for a pleasant evening the previous week.
(b) Nancy Green accepts a job as his social secretary to keep track of his dates.
(c) Josh Speed introduces Lincoln to his sister.
(d) Ninian Edwards invites Lincoln home for dinner.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is Elizabeth Edwards?

2. What is Lincoln's attitude about people before he meets Ann Rutledge?

3. In Act 2, Scene 4, why is Billy Herndon disappointed with Lincoln?

4. Does Lincoln agree, in Act 2, Scene 6, with Josh's suggestion about his mental health?

5. Who is with Lincoln at the beginning of Act 2, Scene 6?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 977 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample