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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. How many men are sick when Boone and Jim sign up for the boat by Jourdonnais?

2. Against which Indian tribe are the Blackfoot waging war in Chapter 22?

3. How do the Indians respond to the prices they are given during the trading in Chapter 24?

4. When does Boone find Bedwell?

5. Which Kentucky town does Boone assume he has reached in Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is causing the men to consider making their current rendezvous the last one in Chapter 24?

2. What lesson is learned when Boone meets Jonathan Bedwell?

3. How does Jim help Boone in his fight with Streak?

4. How does Boone escape his father and the law in Louisville?

5. What causes Boone to leave home in Chapter 1 and what items does he take with him?

6. How does Zeb respond to the plans that are being made for Teal Eye and trading in Chapter 18?

7. How does Boone meet Jim Deakins?

8. Which issues do Jourdonnais and McKenzie discuss at Fort Union?

9. What information does Boone discover while the Mandan travels through the territory of the Rees Indians?

10. How does Jim free Boone from the Paoli jail cell?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The beginning of The Big Sky is also the beginning of Boone's journey to the West on his own.

1) Describe the events that lead to Boone's decision to leave home for the first time.

2) Explain Boone's options and what might have happened if he had chosen to stay.

3) Analyze Boone's decision to leave and its importance to the overall plot of the story.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Boone's initial involvement with a fur trading company while accompanying Dick and Jourdonnais, the problems the company has, Zeb's opinion of why it might not work, and Boone's reply to his uncle.

Essay Topic 3

As Boone continues to learn more about the Indians, two different tribes form opposite sides of a pending war.

1) Analyze the attack on the Mandan by the Sioux and Boone's response to it.

2) Explain the differences between the Sioux and the Rees.

3) Describe the meeting with the Rees and whether it plays a role in the way Boone deals with Indians later in the story.

(see the answer keys)

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