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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 helps to pay the Gordons’ bills?

2. What does it mean to Johnny to be kind?

3. What luxury does the Burbank cattle ranch have?

4. What is Phil’s reaction when he sees that he has made Rose nervous and uncomfortable?

5. How does Alma die?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Phil dislike alcohol?

2. How does the narrator describe the town of Beech in Chapter I?

3. How does George act in a way that surprises Phil, at the end of Chapter VI?

4. How does Peter feel about his new life in Herndon?

5. How does Phil's behavior in college affect George?

6. What makes both George and Rose reluctant to come home to the ranch?

7. How are Phil and George different from those around them?

8. What is known about the Burbank ranch in the first section (Chapters I-III)?

9. What does the narrator say about Phil's eyes in Chapter IV?

10. What does Rose like about George?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In Chapter IV, the narrator describes the keen eyes of Phil. How does the narrator describe Phil's eyes? What can be learned about Phil from this? Do humans seems to fall into the same animal category, based on what is said by the narrator? Why or why not? What might this say about Phil's ability to understand people?

Essay Topic 2

The ways of the past are often put up against modern life at the time. How do the various characters handle these changes to their way of life? Why might some have an easier time accepting these changes than others? How can the reader relate to this? What does this say about the past and present?

Essay Topic 3

The setting of this story is a challenge in so many ways. How is the setting described? How does it affect those who live there? How does it also affect the relationships between the characters? In what ways does the author connect the personalities and relationships between the characters to the landscape around them?

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