View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Thoreau is inclined to be a...

2. What word doesn't Thoreau use to describe John Field?

3. "If you would be chaste, you must be..."

4. What happened to Breed's hut?

5. What dramatic event occurs while Thoreau lives at Walden Pond?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Thoreau build a store of food for winter?

2. How does Thoreau feel after he witnesses the ants battling?

3. How does Thoreau describe the condition of the hut that John Field's family lives in?

4. Why does Thoreau admire the 'wild men' who go ice-fishing on Walden Pond?

5. What does Thoreau think John Field's future holds?

6. What do the hunters say is the downfall of the fox in the foxhunt?

7. Who is the poet with whom Thoreau has a conversation at the beginning of the chapter?

8. What are the two paths that Thoreau finds himself drawn to?

9. What game does Thoreau play with the loon?

10. What did the old man see when he was hunting ducks?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay explaining the societal benefits of education. Are highly educated people made noble by their knowledge? How is the world improved when general education requirements are created by the government?

Essay Topic 2

If you tried to carry out Thoreau's experiment today, would it be possible? Why or why not? Write an essay explaining how our modern society can prevent us from living such a simplified lifestyle. Be sure to include any modern inventions that would actually assist a minimalist lifestyle.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay explaining the pros and cons of living an isolated life. In what situations is it considered beneficial to be solitary, such as during meditation? In what situations is being isolated considered a punishment, such as during solitary confinement? Why does solitude have such different effects in certain situations?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 933 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample