East of Eden, Chapter 28 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. What first tells Cal and Aron that their father has changed?

   • He takes them hunting for rabbits himself
   • He announces that he is leaving the ranch
   • He begins bringing them presents from Salinas
   • Correct answer: He listens to them and asks them questions

   The twins had known Adam only as a presence who heard without listening; at supper he suddenly sees them and asks about their day.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Who shot the rabbit the boys brought home?

   • Aron admits at once that he made the shot
   • Lee shot it and let the boys take the credit
   • Correct answer: Neither boy can say for sure which arrow hit
   • Cal proves the arrow in the rabbit was his

   Aron says they both shot and cannot tell which one hit; Cal claims the arrow was his yet credits Aron with the shot, and Aron himself will only say he might have hit it.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Why does Cal raise the subject of the boys' mother at the table?

   • To make Lee admit what he knows about her
   • Correct answer: To test the new mood in the house and upset it
   • Because Lee had promised to explain her absence
   • Because Aron asked him to bring it up for him

   Cal studies the changed household like an anthill and decides where to kick it over; the mother is the one subject certain to shake his father.

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does Lee say is the worst danger of Adam's lie?

   • Correct answer: That the boys will stop believing anything he says
   • That the twins will grow up hating their mother
   • That the neighbors in the valley will gossip
   • That Adam will be forced to sell off the ranch

   Lee argues the lie may infect everything, so that when the true things are told the boys will no longer trust them.

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5. 5

   Question 5. How did Lee's mother reach the railroad camp in the Sierras?

   • She was hired by the camp bosses as a cook
   • Correct answer: She was disguised as a man among the laborers
   • She travelled later as a labor contractor's wife
   • She was already living and working in California

   She braided her hair in a man's queue and hid among the recruits; Lee's father did not find her until they had been a week at sea.

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6. 6

   Question 6. What ruined the plan Lee's parents had made for the birth?

   • A camp boss discovered the disguise beforehand
   • They were caught stealing food from the stores
   • Correct answer: A boulder broke his father's leg and labor came early
   • His father was transferred to a distant work camp

   The plan needed the timing to be right, but a boulder broke his father's leg and his mother went into early labor before they could run for the lake.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does Lee suggest Adam put in his letter to Charles?

   • Correct answer: An invitation for Charles to come out west
   • A request for money to improve the ranch
   • An apology for the years of silence between them
   • An honest account of what became of Cathy

   Lee points out that inviting Charles to visit also gives Adam a reason for writing, which makes the letter possible.

   Read the passage
8. 8

   Question 8. Which of these events actually occur in this chapter?

   • Adam laughs aloud, a sound the twins cannot remember hearing before.

     Happened

     At supper Adam laughs, and the boys cannot recall ever having heard him laugh.

   • Adam tells Cal and Aron the truth about where their mother is.

     Didn't happen

     Adam lies instead, telling the boys their mother's grave is clear across the country and that she was sent home on a train.

   • Lee brings out more than ten years of house and ranch accounts.

     Happened

     Lee carries in a big cardboard box with a book for each year and receipted bills for everything, after Adam protests at accounts for over ten years.

   • The family packs up and moves into Salinas before the chapter ends.

     Didn't happen

     Adam only passes on Mr. Bacon's suggestion that they move to Salinas and asks the boys to think about it; nobody moves in this chapter.

   • Adam writes a letter to his brother and seals it himself.

     Happened

     Using Lee's ink and pen, Adam writes to Charles inviting him to visit, then seals the envelope flap with his fist.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these details belong to Lee's story about his parents?

   • His father discovered his mother aboard ship a week into the crossing.

     Happened

     Lee says his parents were a week at sea before his father discovered his mother, dressed as a man among the recruits.

   • His parents reached the mountain lake and the baby was born there safely.

     Didn't happen

     They never reached the lake: his father's leg was broken, his mother went into early labor in the camp, the men attacked her, and she died on the shale.

   • After his leg was broken his father was set to straightening used nails.

     Happened

     Lee says a little boulder broke his father's leg and he was given cripples' work, straightening used nails with a hammer on a rock.

   • Lee refuses to tell Adam anything at all about his own family.

     Didn't happen

     Lee tells Adam the whole story of his parents, from the ship's hold to his mother's death, though he says he wishes he had not started.

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does 'glibly' mean in the line describing Adam's lie: 'it came so quickly to his mind and so glibly to his tongue'?

    • Bitterly and with resentment
    • Slowly and with great effort
    • Loudly and with obvious anger
    • Correct answer: Fluently and far too easily

    Glibly means smoothly and without thought; the ease of his own lie is what frightens Adam.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does 'mutinous' mean in Lee's line: 'Fifteen men were shot for being a little mutinous.'?

    • Sick with a contagious fever
    • Correct answer: Rebellious toward those in charge
    • Careless with company property
    • Unable to keep up with the work

    Mutinous means refusing to submit to authority, and the camp bosses answered it with the rifle.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What is a 'queue' in the description of Lee's mother: 'she had braided her hair in a man's queue'?

    • Correct answer: A long braid hanging down the back
    • A leather cord used to tie a bundle
    • A line of people waiting to board
    • A cloth cap worn by the laborers

    A queue is a plaited braid worn down the back, and wearing one helped her pass as one of the men.

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