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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. What does the family find living inside the tree that Falconhurst is built on?

2. At the beginning of Chapter 10, "Changing Seasons," what does Elizabeth ask the narrator to construct?

3. In Chapter 17, "Bounty and Peril," what does the family discover on Shark Island after they have left the antelope there for several months?

4. What important substances does the narrator tell his sons can be obtained from fir trees?

5. What is the first name that the family gives to their cave house?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 15, "We Explore Inland," where does the family explore for the first time and what new animal do they capture to ride, there?

2. In Chapter 15, "We Explore Inland," how does Ernest kill the muskrats, and what does he intend to do with them?

3. In Chapter 12, "Anniversary," how does the narrator begin the athletic competition, and what is this incident intended to demonstrate about his character?

4. In Chapter 17, "Bounty and Peril," what new method of skinning animals does the narrator devise, and why does he feel it is necessary?

5. In Chapter 10, "Changing Seasons," how does the narrator explain grafting to his sons?

6. In Chapter 11, "Our Estates," what new source of potential danger does the family discover, and what do they decide to do about it?

7. In Chapter 14, "A Casualty," what dirty job does the family undertake, and what does it cause Elizabeth to suggest?

8. In Chapter 16, "A Winged Steed," what does the narrator feel as the boys ride away on their first solo expedition?

9. In Chapter 16, "A Winged Steed," how do the narrator and his sons succeed in catching an ostrich?

10. In Chapter 12, "Anniversary," how do Jack and Fritz wake the family, and how do their parents respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you analyze the value of the island in this story as a microcosm of the larger world. In what ways does it resemble the larger world, and in what ways is it an imperfect allegory for the world itself? Be sure to use textual evidence to support your claims.

Essay Topic 2

In what way does this novel illustrate the values of the author's culture? Use both textual evidence and outside sources to analyze the novel as a reflection of late-eighteenth-century Swiss values. Cite your sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explore the sometimes conflicting attitudes the book expresses toward the usefulness of book learning. Does the narrator believe that the kind of education you can get from books is always valuable, or only valuable under certain circumstances? Use specific textual evidence to support your claims.

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