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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. The expression "The arrows of death fly unseen at noonday" (408), which Edwards uses in the Doctrine section of his sermon, could properly be called an example of which literary technique?

2. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, what does Edwards say is a typical way for sinners to think?

3. What is Edwards' third argument for the truth of his statement of doctrine?

4. What is Edwards' fifth argument for the truth of his statement of doctrine?

5. What is Edwards' fourth argument for the truth of his statement of doctrine?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain what Edwards is saying, in the Doctrine section of the sermon, about the nature of the souls of sinners when he says "There are in the souls of wicked men those hellish principles reigning, that would presently kindle and flame out into hell fire, if it were not for God's restraints" (408).

2. Why, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, does Edwards say that sinners should not be comforted by the fact that there is no "visible means of death at hand" (408)?

3. Why does Edwards say, in the Doctrine section of the sermon, that those who think that they are protecting themselves from hell are fooling themselves?

4. In the end of the Doctrine section of his sermon, what criticism does Edwards make of religious authorities who do not believe what he believes?

5. What reasons does Edwards give, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, for divine justice not stopping God from casting sinners into hell?

6. According to the Doctrine section of Edwards' sermon, what different promises has God made to the converted and the unconverted?

7. When, in the Doctrine section of his speech, Edwards says that "The Scripture represents them as his 'goods'" (407), to whom does he refer when he says "them" and "his," and what point is he making about these people?

8. Explain why, in the Doctrine section of his sermon, Edwards says that God is not like an earthly prince.

9. According to the Doctrine section of Edwards' sermon, what is God's attitude toward the sinners who are not yet in hell?

10. In the Doctrine section of his sermon, what does Edwards mean when he says that the "mere pleasure of God" (406) is all that keeps sinners out of hell?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Choose a passage from "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" that makes use of parallel structure. Explain what makes the structure parallel and defend a claim about the rhetorical purpose of this parallelism.

Essay Topic 2

Choose a poem by Phillis Wheatley (her work is widely available online.) Explain how the poem exemplifies the ideas of the Great Awakening.

Essay Topic 3

Analyze the effect of repetition in "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God."

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