Of Mice and Men, Chapter 2 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Who is the first person to greet George and Lennie when they arrive at the bunkhouse?

   • Carlson, the ranch hand who works with the others
   • Correct answer: Candy, the old swamper who cleans the bunkhouse
   • Slim, the respected and skilled mule driver
   • Curley, the boss's aggressive and combative son

   Candy, an aging handyman who has lost his right hand, is the first to meet George and Lennie and show them their bunks.

   Read the passage
2. 2

   Question 2. What reason does George give the boss for Lennie's inability to speak for himself?

   • Correct answer: Lennie was kicked in the head by a horse when he was a young child
   • Lennie has a speech impediment that makes communication very difficult
   • Lennie was injured in a farm accident that affected his ability to speak
   • Lennie is shy and uncomfortable talking to strangers he does not know

   George lies, saying Lennie is his cousin who was kicked in the head by a horse as a child, to explain Lennie's intellectual disability without revealing the truth.

   Read the passage
3. 3

   Question 3. Why is the boss suspicious of George and Lennie traveling together?

   • He worries they are union organizers trying to recruit his ranch workers
   • He thinks they are fugitives running from the law in another county
   • Correct answer: He believes George is stealing Lennie's wages and exploiting his labor
   • He suspects they were fired from their previous ranch for causing trouble

   The boss finds it suspicious that George speaks for Lennie and suspects he might be taking Lennie's pay. Later in the chapter Slim remarks that not many guys travel around together.

   Read the passage
4. 4

   Question 4. What does Candy tell George about why Curley picks fights with bigger men?

   • Curley's wife encourages him to fight larger men to demonstrate his bravery to her
   • Curley's father rewards him for keeping the ranch workers in line through intimidation
   • Curley is angry that the new men showed up late and cost the grain teams a morning
   • Correct answer: Curley is like many small men who resent big guys and want to prove their toughness

   Candy explains that Curley has a Napoleon complex — he's a small man who compensates by being aggressive toward larger men to prove his dominance.

   Read the passage
5. 5

   Question 5. What escape plan does George establish with Lennie in case of trouble?

   • Find Slim in the barn and ask him for protection until the trouble passes over
   • Hide under the bunks in the back of the bunkhouse until George comes to find him
   • Run to the nearest town and wait at the bus station for George to arrive later
   • Correct answer: Go back to the brush by the river where they slept the night before

   George tells Lennie to go to the brush by the river where they slept the night before arriving at the ranch, and to hide there until George comes for him.

   Read the passage
6. 6

   Question 6. How is Slim described when he first appears in the bunkhouse?

   • As a loud, boisterous man who commands attention through the volume of his voice
   • Correct answer: As the prince of the ranch, with a grave manner and a quiet, natural authority
   • As an old, weathered cowboy who has spent decades working on various ranches
   • As a young, ambitious worker eager to prove himself to the boss and his son

   Slim is introduced with near-reverent language as the 'prince of the ranch' whose authority and skill earn him universal respect.

   Read the passage
7. 7

   Question 7. What does Carlson suggest should be done about Candy's old dog?

   • Correct answer: The dog should be shot because it is old and suffering, and replaced with a puppy
   • The dog needs to see a veterinarian in town who can treat its various ailments
   • The dog should be kept in the barn away from the men living in the bunkhouse
   • Candy should give the dog away to a family in town who can better care for it

   Carlson complains about the smell of Candy's old, nearly blind dog and suggests that Candy shoot it and raise one of Slim's new puppies instead.

   Read the passage
8. 8

   Question 8. Which of the following events actually happens in Chapter 2?

   • The boss sends George and Lennie out with the grain teams before the noon meal
   • George admits to the boss that he and Lennie left Weed because of trouble there
   • Correct answer: Curley's wife appears in the bunkhouse doorway, ostensibly looking for Curley
   • Lennie answers each of the boss's questions himself while George stays quiet

   Curley's wife does appear in the bunkhouse doorway in Chapter 2, claiming to look for Curley. George does the talking for Lennie, the boss sends them out only after dinner, and George tells the boss they left Weed because the job was done.

   Read the passage
9. 9

   Question 9. Which of the following does NOT happen in Chapter 2?

   • Candy warns George about Curley's aggressive nature and boxing background
   • Correct answer: Slim offers George and Lennie one of his dog's new puppies right away
   • George warns Lennie to stay far away from both Curley and Curley's wife
   • George fabricates a story about Lennie being his cousin to tell the boss

   While Slim's dog having puppies is mentioned in Chapter 2, Slim does not immediately offer a puppy to George and Lennie in this chapter. That discussion happens later.

   Read the passage
10. 10

    Question 10. In the context of the ranch, what does the term 'swamper' mean?

    • A cook who prepares all the meals for the ranch workers each day
    • A foreman who supervises the field workers during the harvest season
    • A worker who tends to the horses and mules in the ranch stable
    • Correct answer: A general handyman or janitor who cleans floors and does odd jobs

    A swamper is a handyman or janitor. Candy, the old swamper, carries a push-broom and says he has just finished swamping out the wash house.

    Read the passage
11. 11

    Question 11. What does the word 'pugnacious' mean, as it might be used to describe Curley?

    • Charming and persuasive; skilled at winning people over to one's side
    • Generous and warm-hearted; willing to share resources with other people
    • Correct answer: Eager to argue, quarrel, or fight; combative and aggressive by nature
    • Timid and easily frightened; reluctant to engage in any type of conflict

    Pugnacious means combative and eager to fight. Curley exemplifies this trait through his aggressive posturing and his habit of picking fights with bigger men.

    Read the passage
12. 12

    Question 12. What is a 'jerkline skinner' in the context of Depression-era ranch work?

    • Correct answer: A skilled driver who controls a team of mules or horses using a single rein
    • A ranch hand who maintains and repairs the fences around the property
    • A butcher who prepares dried meat, or jerky, for the ranch workers to eat
    • A worker who skins and processes animal hides for leather production

    A jerkline skinner is a highly skilled driver of a mule team, controlling the animals with a single line (jerkline). Slim holds this prestigious position on the ranch.

    Read the passage
13. 13

    Question 13. What literary device is Steinbeck primarily using when George tells Lennie to return to the brush by the river if trouble arises?

    • Personification, giving human qualities to the natural setting by the river pool
    • Correct answer: Foreshadowing, hinting that trouble will indeed come and the escape plan will be needed
    • Hyperbole, exaggerating the danger that George and Lennie face at the new ranch
    • Flashback, recalling an earlier time when George and Lennie had to flee from danger

    George's insistence on establishing an escape plan is foreshadowing — it signals to the reader that the trouble George fears will eventually materialize, and this plan will become critical.

    Read the passage