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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the only traditional item of clothing that the Indian wears who grew up living on an island in the lake, according to the narrator in Chapter 3?
(a) A feather headdress.
(b) Moccasins.
(c) A wampum.
(d) A fur cape.

2. Who are George's daughters that sit with him and his wife at dinner as Howard rings the bell in 1953?
(a) Elizabeth and Marie.
(b) Kathleen and Sarah.
(c) Anna and Mary.
(d) Betsy and Claire.

3. What kind of car does Howard borrow from Jimmy Drizos in Chapter 4?
(a) A Chevy pickup.
(b) A Ford sedan.
(c) A Ford pickup.
(d) A VW bus.

4. Who does Howard describe paddling a canoe through the woods behind his family's house just before his father is taken away in Chapter 3?
(a) Sam.
(b) Charlie.
(c) Old Sabbatis.
(d) Old Red.

5. Who does Howard believe the Indian to be that he sees in the pond in Chapter 3?
(a) Dan Cooper.
(b) Old Sabbatis.
(c) Tom Budden.
(d) Old Red.

Short Answer Questions

1. The narrator says of George as he dies in Chapter 4, "His bloodless legs were hard like wood." What literary device is used in this sentence?

2. What is the principle motif that reappears throughout Tinkers?

3. Where in the house does Howard's mother dress his father before his father is taken away?

4. Where does George live in 1953?

5. What does Howard describe his father doing all of the time in Howard's childhood in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where does Megan go during the Christmas holidays in 1953? What does Howard do after she leaves?

2. How do George's memories of his father relate to the theme of rites of passage in Tinkers?

3. How does the theme of competition apply to the characters of Howard and Reverend Crosby?

4. What is the principle motif used throughout Tinkers? What does this motif represent?

5. How has Howard managed to track down George's address in Chapter 4? What does he do when he locates George?

6. What regret does Howard display regarding his father in the beginning of Chapter 3?

7. What is symbolic about the descriptions of Reverend Crosby fading from Howard's vision in Chapter 3, Part 1?

8. What characters are introduced during Howard's journey to search for his father in Chapter 3, Part 2?

9. How would you describe George's relationship with his family as he passes from life in Tinkers?

10. How is the disappearance of Reverend Crosby described in Chapter 3, Part 1? How does Howard's mother address the issue?

(see the answer keys)

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