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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. Who held John Wilkes Booth's horse in the alley behind the theater, unknowingly help him to keep his escape route accessible?

2. Who sent a letter to the proprietors of the Ford Theater announcing the Lincolns' intention to attend the play at the theater that night?

3. What words did one audience member report hearing John Wilkes Booth speak as he ran from the stage toward the wings?

4. Where did Lewis Powell sleep on the two nights subsequent to the events at William Seward's house?

5. Worried that Lewis Powell or other assassins might return to the house, what action did Fanny Seward take throughout the night after the attack?

Short Essay Questions

1. How was Frederick Seward injured during Lewis Powell's attempt to assassinate Secretary of State William Seward?

2. What are two themes touched upon within Abraham Lincoln's inauguration day speech of 1865?

3. What is the author's purpose in relating the events of Mary Lincoln Todd's and Abraham Lincoln's afternoon together on the date of the assassination?

4. Who was the only audience member in Ford's Theater to chase after John Wilkes Booth and why did no one else follow him?

5. What methods does James L. Swanson use to convey the chaotic nature of the scene within Ford's Theater after John Wilkes Booth had escaped?

6. What qualities of William Seward's situation caused him to chosen by the assassins as the third target in the assassination plot, in addition to Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson?

7. What is James L. Swanson's purpose when he describes John Wilkes Booth's passions as including "the romance of lost causes"? (2)

8. How does James L. Swanson use the words of Mary Todd Lincoln's dressmaker, Elizabeth Keckley, to foreshadow the coming death of Abraham Lincoln?

9. How does James L. Swanson characterize the personality of the actress Laura Keene, who was present at the scene of John Wilkes Booth's shooting of Abraham Lincoln.

10. How does James L. Swanson create suspense in the scene when Lewis Powell attempts to assassinate William Seward?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the dichotomy between John Wilkes Booth's expectations of the effect his assassination of President Lincoln would have on the country, with the events that actually unfolded and how his act was viewed in years to come. Support your analytical points with textual evidence from the book.

Essay Topic 2

How is the theme of crafted performance portrayed within the book? Examine James L. Swanson's treatment of actors and their professions, the antagonist's acting career, and the theme of appearance versus reality throughout the novel. Support your points with concrete details from the text.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how poets such as Walt Whitman gave a voice to Americans in a time of grief over Abraham Lincoln's assassination and what overall effect their works had a country in mourning. Choose at least two poems by Walt Whitman and include concrete details from the poems and from the book in order to back up your points.

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