Unit: Freedom Touring American Literature: Native Myths to the Civil War

Which of the following quotations by Huck's father in chapter 5 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an example of irony?

"And looky here—you drop that school, you hear? I'll learn people to bring up a boy to put on airs over his own father and let on to be better'n what HE is."

Read the quotation from Henry David Thoreau's Walden. Every day or two I strolled to the village to hear some of the gossip which is incessantly going on there, circulating either from mouth to mouth, or from newspaper to newspaper, and which, taken in homeopathic doses, was really as refreshing in its way as the rustle of leaves and the peeping of frogs. As I walked in the woods to see the birds and squirrels, so I walked in the village to see the men and boys; instead of the wind among the pines I heard the carts rattle. Which is the best example of a vivid sensory detail?

"as the rustle of leaves and the peeping of frogs"

By studying the suffix of "fallacy," a reader can conclude it means

"the state of being false."

Based on the prefix, the word "extricate" most likely means

"to get out of a situation."

Which of Ahab's character traits does Melville develop most thoroughly in Chapter 41 of Moby-Dick?

Ahab's obsessive need for revenge

Which excerpt from "The Masque of the Red Death" best shows Prince Prospero's self-centeredness?

But the Prince Prospero was happy and dauntless and sagacious. When his dominions were half depopulated, he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys.

Read the sentence relating to Roger Chillingworth from Chapter 4 of The Scarlet Letter. "Never, sayest thou?" rejoined he with a smile of dark and self-relying intelligence. What trait of Roger Chillingworth does Hawthorne develop in this sentence?

Chillingworth's sinister motivations

Read the excerpt from chapter 5 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. "It's so. You can do it. I had my doubts when you told me. Now looky here; you stop that putting on frills. I won't have it. I'll lay for you, my smarty; and if I catch you about that school I'll tan you good. First you know you'll get religion, too. I never see such a son." What do these words by Huck's father reveal about his character?

He believes that education will make Huck feel superior.

Read the quotation from chapter 5 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, in which Huck is discussing his father. I HAD shut the door to. Then I turned around and there he was. I used to be scared of him all the time, he tanned me so much. I reckoned I was scared now, too; but in a minute I see I was mistaken—that is, after the first jolt, as you may say, when my breath sort of hitched, he being so unexpected; but right away after I see I warn't scared of him worth bothring about. Based on the excerpt, which is the most reasonable plot prediction?

Huck will confidently face his father.

Read the sentence. Derek Jeter notched his 3,000th hit for the New York Yankees when he was thirty-seven years old in 2011 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Which is the best way to revise this complex sentence?

In 2011, Derek Jeter notched his 3,000th hit for the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. He was thirty-seven years old.

Which event described in chapter 1 of The Scarlet Letter takes place before the story begins?

The Puritans erect a jail.

Read this excerpt from "The Mysterious Stranger" using comprehension strategies. The romantic character of the place delighted me; I was very much amused by the air of adventure and intrigue that prevailed in this region of masks and gondolas; and I was exceedingly smitten by a pair of languishing black eyes, that played upon my heart from under an Italian mantle. So I persuaded myself that I was lingering at Venice to study men and manners. At least I persuaded my friends so, and that answered all my purpose. What statement best describes the narrator in this excerpt?

The narrator is not entirely truthful about his reasons for staying in Venice.

Read this excerpt from chapter 2 of The Scarlet Letter using comprehension strategies. It was no great distance, in those days, from the prison-door to the market-place. Measured by the prisoner's experience, however, it might be reckoned a journey of some length; for, haughty as her demeanour was, she perchance underwent an agony from every footstep of those that thronged to see her, as if her heart had been flung into the street for them all to spurn and trample upon. What is the meaning of this excerpt?

The walk from prison to scaffolding seemed a long and treacherous journey to Hester.

Read this excerpt from chapter 2 of The Scarlet Letter. Standing on that miserable eminence, she saw again her native village, in Old England, and her paternal home; a decayed house of gray stone, with a poverty-stricken aspect, but retaining a half-obliterated shield of arms over the portal, in token of antique gentility. What is the effect of the underlined words in this excerpt?

They portray a former setting with humility and dignity.

Based on Chapter 4 of The Scarlet Letter, what biased view do Hester Prynne and most of her fellow settlers hold of themselves in relation to the Native American population in the area?

They see themselves as more civilized.

Read this excerpt from chapter 41 of Moby-Dick using comprehension strategies. If such a furious trope may stand, his special lunacy stormed his general sanity, and carried it, and turned all its concentred cannon upon its own mad mark; so that far from having lost his strength, Ahab, to that one end, did now possess a thousand fold more potency than ever he had sanely brought to bear upon any one reasonable object. What is the meaning of this excerpt?

Though Ahab is physically weakened, his insanity has strengthened his will for revenge.

In Chapter 41 of Moby-Dick, which belief about society and nature does Ahab's relationship with the White Whale best demonstrate?

a belief that man is superior to nature

Read the excerpt relating to Reverend Mr. Wilson from Chapter 3 of The Scarlet Letter. He looked like the darkly engraved portraits which we see prefixed to old volumes of sermons; and had no more right than one of those portraits would have, to step forth, as he now did, and meddle with a question of human guilt, passion, and anguish. Which trait of Reverend Mr. Wilson does Hawthorne develop in this excerpt from the chapter?

arrogance

A clue that helps the reader to understand a word's meaning by using a comparison to connect the word to another word or idea is known as a

synonym clue.

Read the two excerpts from section 3 of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." Then all at once, with terrible suddenness, the light about him shot upward with the noise of a loud splash; a frightful roaring was in his ears, and all was cold and dark. The power of thought was restored; he knew that the rope had broken and he had fallen into the stream. *** As he is about to clasp her he feels a stunning blow upon the back of the neck; a blinding white light blazes all about him with a sound like the shock of a cannon—then all is darkness and silence! What does the motif of a loud sound represent in the story?

the passage between dreams and reality

Read the excerpt from chapter 23 of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. "What we want is to go out of here quiet, and talk this show up, and sell the rest of the town! Then we'll all be in the same boat. Ain't that sensible?" ("You bet it is!—the jedge is right!" everybody sings out.) Twain is most likely using humor to make a statement about the impressionability of which of the following groups of people?

those who are considered common folk, represented by the townspeople

Read this excerpt from chapter 41 of Moby-Dick. And, when running into more sufferable latitudes, the ship, with mild stun'sails spread, floated across the tranquil tropics, and, to all appearances, the old man's delirium seemed left behind him with the Cape Horn swells, and he came forth from his dark den into the blessed light and air; even then, when he bore that firm, collected front, however pale, and issued his calm orders once again; and his mates thanked God the direful madness was now gone; even then, Ahab, in his hidden self, raved on. Which words from the excerpt best convey the mood?

tranquil tropics

Read the excerpt from "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge." As he pushes open the gate and passes up the wide white walk, he sees a flutter of female garments; his wife, looking fresh and cool and sweet, steps down from the veranda to meet him. At the bottom of the steps she stands waiting, with a smile of ineffable joy, an attitude of matchless grace and dignity. Ah, how beautiful she is! He springs forward with extended arms. Which best describes the narration in the excerpt?

warm and romantic

Read this excerpt from chapter 2 of The Scarlet Letter using comprehension strategies. A blessing on the righteous Colony of the Massachusetts, where iniquity is dragged out into the sunshine! What is the meaning of the word "iniquity"?

wickedness, sin