A Letter from Santa Claus quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Which literary genres best describe "A Letter from Santa Claus"?

   • Gothic Horror & Ghost Story
   • Adventure & Sea Story
   • Tragedy & Social Protest
   • Mystery & Detective Fiction
   • Correct answer: Epistolary Humor & Family Letter

   Epistolary Humor & Family Letter is the best fit. The whole piece is a letter, written by a father in Santa's voice to delight his small daughter, and it is full of comic rules and jokes.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Where does Santa say he is writing from?

   • Correct answer: The Palace of Saint Nicholas in the Moon
   • A sleigh parked on the Clemens roof
   • A workshop at the North Pole
   • A cottage deep in the snowy forest of the north

   The letter is headed "Palace of Saint Nicholas in the Moon" and dated Christmas Morning.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Which letters did Santa have trouble reading?

   • The letters Susy and her baby sister scribbled themselves
   • Correct answer: The letters dictated through Susy's mother and the nurses
   • The letter George wrote asking for a new broom
   • The letters the neighbours' children sent to the Moon

   He read the girls' "jagged and fantastic marks without any trouble at all" but had trouble with "those letters which you dictated through your mother and the nurses."

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does "Dictated" mean in this story?

   • Copied word for word from a book
   • Hid from someone
   • Drew as a picture
   • Correct answer: Spoke for another to write

   Letters "which you dictated through your mother and the nurses" were spoken aloud by Susy and written down by grown-ups.

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5. 5

   Question 5. What does Santa need to ask Susy about?

   • Whether the baby wants a doll or a wooden horse
   • Whether the family will be home on Christmas Day
   • Correct answer: Whether Susy ordered a trunk full of doll's clothes
   • Whether Susy has been good enough to get anything at all

   He took a word or two in mama's letter "to be 'a trunk full of doll's clothes.' Is that it?"

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6. 6

   Question 6. At what time will Santa call at the kitchen door?

   • Seven o'clock
   • Noon
   • Correct answer: Nine o'clock
   • Midnight

   "I will call at your kitchen door about nine o'clock this morning to inquire."

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7. 7

   Question 7. What must George do when the kitchen doorbell rings?

   • Bake cookies and leave them by the fireplace
   • Correct answer: Be blindfolded and walk on tiptoe without speaking
   • Climb up to the roof and clear the snow from the chimney
   • Ring the bell in the hall when Santa arrives

   "George must be blindfolded and sent to the door. You must tell George he must walk on tiptoe and not speak."

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8. 8

   Question 8. Why is it funny that George "will die someday" if he breaks the rules?

   • Santa is angry with George for being lazy
   • George is very ill and must rest in bed
   • Susy's mother has said she will punish George if he talks
   • Correct answer: The threat is a joke, since everyone dies someday

   Santa warns that otherwise George "will die someday," which is true of everyone, rules or no rules. Twain makes a joke that sounds like a threat.

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9. 9

   Question 9. How will Susy and Santa talk to each other?

   • Correct answer: By the speaking tube to the kitchen
   • By a telephone set up beside the fireplace
   • By shouting down the chimney in the hall
   • By slipping notes under the kitchen door

   Susy must "put your ear to the speaking tube that leads down to the kitchen," and when Santa whistles she says, "Welcome, Santa Claus!"

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does "Holystone" mean in this story?

    • To paint over
    • To cover with a rug
    • Correct answer: To scrub with a stone
    • To polish with wax

    "George must not holystone it away." To holystone is to scrub with a soft sandstone, as sailors scrubbed ships' decks.

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11. 11

    Question 11. Why will Santa use the chimney in the hall?

    • Correct answer: A trunk could not fit down the nursery chimney
    • Susy's baby sister is asleep in the nursery
    • The hall fireplace is the closest to the Moon
    • The nursery chimney is blocked with snow

    "I couldn't get such a thing as a trunk down the nursery chimney, you know."

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12. 12

    Question 12. Why should Santa's boot mark be left on the marble?

    • To show visitors how big his boots are
    • Correct answer: To remind Susy to be a good little girl
    • To mark the spot where the trunk will go
    • To prove to George that Santa is real

    "Leave it there always in memory of my visit; and whenever you look at it ... you must let it remind you to be a good little girl."

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13. 13

    Question 13. What must George use to sweep the snow into the fireplace?

    • A broom
    • A mop
    • A brush
    • Correct answer: A rag

    "George must not use a broom, but a rag--else he will die someday."

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14. 14

    Question 14. What is the central theme of the letter?

    • Correct answer: A parent's love can make magic real
    • Children should not believe in Santa
    • Servants must always obey orders
    • Christmas presents should be small

    Twain invents a whole Christmas adventure, with a moon palace, a speaking tube, and a boot mark, to delight his daughter and make the magic of Santa feel real.

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15. 15

    Question 15. Which of these events actually happened in the story?

    • Santa says he went down the chimney at midnight and kissed both girls.

      Happened

      He delivered their orders himself "and kissed both of you, too."

    • Santa says every single order was filled.

      Didn't happen

      There were "one or two small orders which I could not fill because we ran out of stock."

    • Susy must stand on a chair or the nurse's bed to reach the speaking tube.

      Happened

      She must "stand on a chair or the nurse's bed and put your ear to the speaking tube."

    • Santa asks to speak to everyone in the house.

      Didn't happen

      "I must not see anybody and I must not speak to anybody but you."

    • Santa will ask Susy what color she wants the trunk to be.

      Happened

      "I shall ask you what color you want the trunk to be."

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