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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 do George and Bessie Black Bull opt for when the white man's method of support fails?

2. Upon returning to his mountain, what does Tom Black Bull learn?

3. Tom Black Bull is given a single room at whose suggestion?

4. When Tom Black Bull is entered in the first rodeo in Aztec, what is he instructed to do?

5. How is George Black Bull killed?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Tom Black Bull manage as he rides the rodeo circuit the summer following Red Dillon's death?

2. What methods does Red Dillon use to teach Tom Black Bull to ride?

3. What happens when Tom Black Bull arrives with his bear cub companion in town to trade basketry?

4. How does the theme of the roundness of all life unfold through Bessie Black Bull?

5. What does the introductory poem to "When the Legends Die" summarize?

6. How does Red Dillon use Tom Black Bull to make money on his initial scam?

7. What happens when Tom Black Bull encounters his bear cub the next spring at the reservation school boundaries?

8. Why is Tom Black unable to shoot the bear after waiting all night?

9. Why is the reservation school unsuccessful in teaching Tom Black Bull how to plow fields?

10. What is printed about Tom Black in the newspaper when he rides in Madison Square Garden?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Tom Black Bull has a difficult time making the transition into the white man's way at the reservation school. They attempt to turn Tom into a farmer by teaching him plowing skills. Why is this unsuccessful? What is Tom's view of the usefulness of plowing and planting skills?

Essay Topic 2

Bessie Black Bull follows the 'old way' of teaching through songs. Elaborate on this Ute Indian approach to passing on their heritage. What songs does Tom Black Bull learn from his mother? What is he taught through them?

Essay Topic 3

Roundness of life is a significant theme in this story. It unfolds through Bessie Black Bull, who maintains the 'old ways' and instructs them to Tom. What is it the reader learns to look for with this theme? How does the concept of continuation within all life tie in with this 'roundness' theme? Detail the method Bessie uses to teach this intrinsic truth concerning nature.

(see the answer keys)

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