Reading Check and Short Answer questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

Reading Check

1. During which war does the main story take place?

2. How did Gary’s brother die?

3. Why does Gary go into the woods?

4. Who does Gary believe the man in the black suit is?

5. What does the man tell Gary about his mother? Is it true?

6. How does Gary escape from the man?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Why is the narrator, Gary, writing this story?

2. What fish does Gary catch, and how do they become important in the story?

3. What irrational conclusion does Gary draw about the bee that crawls on his face?

4. Why does the Devil include so many vivid details in his description of Gary’s mother’s death?

5. How does Gary interpret his escape from the Devil? Does it make sense?

6. How has Gary’s interaction with the Devil affected his adult life?

Recommended Next Reads

“Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne

• In 17th-century Puritan New England, Goodman Brown experiences a crisis of faith. He travels through the woods with a mysterious man and appears to be participating in a religious ceremony in which he and his wife are sworn in to join the other townspeople.