Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-work review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. Based on your inference from the text, how would Thoreau have reacted to the growth of social welfare tax systems in the mid-20th century?

A)   He would have wholeheartedly embraced the consolidation of federal power.

B)    He would have supported the increase in social welfare taxes.

C)    He would have preferred a military leadership.

D)   He would have disagreed with a stronger, central government.

2. Which of the following best describes Thoreau’s opinion on the Mexican War?

A)    He trusts that it is the will of the American people.

B)    He is concerned that it will affect the U.S.’s relationship with France.

C)    He believes that a few politicians are using the government as a tool.

D)   He is apathetic about war and violence administered by the government.

3. According to Thoreau, the United States government exhibits which quality in relation to individuals who try to abuse its power?

A)    Pliability

B)    Steadfastness

C)    Perseverance

D)   Effervescence

4. Which of the following historical contexts does Thoreau allude to throughout the essay?

A)    Emancipation

B)    The War of 1812

C)    The Gilded Age

D)   The antebellum era

5. Which of the following best summarizes Thoreau’s opinion on voting?

A)    It is a crucial component of a functioning democracy.

B)    It is an act of apathy that has very little effect on changing the government.

C)    It is a shameful act, used only by Southern slave owners and as a political tool.

D)   It is an egalitarian process that ensures all voices are heard and represented equally.

6. Which of the following would Thoreau consider an appropriate method of protesting the government?

A)    Refusing allegiance to an unjust cause

B)    Paying taxes dutifully

C)    Voting

D)   Fighting in war

7. What is a concern of Thoreau’s regarding the government’s use of his dollar?

A)    It will be used for more prisons.

B)    It will be used to finance slavery or war.

C)    It will be used to pay politicians.

D)   It will be used to pay clergymen.

8. Thoreau notes that “above all, there is this difference between resisting this and a purely brute or natural force, that I can resist this with some effect; but I cannot expect, like Orpheus, to change the nature of the rocks and trees and beasts.” Which of the following literary devices is used in this quote?

A)    Metaphor

B)    Allegory

C)    Palindrome

D)   Allusion

Long-Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. How does Thoreau use figurative language in developing his argument? Provide two examples of figurative language from the text, and briefly describe how they function.