To Kill a Mockingbird, Chapter 29 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Where does Chapter 29 primarily take place?

   • Correct answer: Jem's bedroom in the Finch house
   • The schoolyard under the big oak
   • The front porch of the Radley Place
   • The Finch family's livingroom

   The chapter is set in Jem's bedroom, where Mr. Tate asks to stay so he can look at Jem's injuries. Aunt Alexandra leaves for her room before Scout begins, so Atticus and Heck Tate listen to her account while the man who brought Jem home stands in the corner.

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2. 2

   Question 2. Who asks Scout to recount the events of the attack?

   • Atticus
   • Aunt Alexandra
   • Correct answer: Heck Tate
   • Dr. Reynolds

   Sheriff Heck Tate asks Scout to tell them what happened while it is still fresh in her mind, and he questions her as she goes.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Who did Scout and Jem initially assume was following them in the dark?

   • Boo Radley
   • Correct answer: Cecil Jacobs
   • Walter Cunningham
   • Bob Ewell

   Cecil Jacobs had already scared them once that evening at the school, so they assumed the footsteps belonged to him trying the same trick again.

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4. 4

   Question 4. What did Scout's ham costume prevent?

   • Jem from finding her after she fell
   • Her from hearing the footsteps behind them
   • Mr. Ewell from grabbing her in the dark
   • Correct answer: Bob Ewell's knife from reaching her body

   The rigid chicken wire frame of the ham costume deflected Ewell's knife slash, saving Scout's life despite trapping her and blocking her vision.

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5. 5

   Question 5. What evidence does Heck Tate show the group?

   • Correct answer: The slashed ham costume
   • A torn shirt belonging to Ewell
   • Footprints from under the tree
   • A bloodstained knife

   Tate examines the remains of Scout's crushed ham costume, says it probably saved her life, and points to a shiny clean line on the dull wire where the blade struck.

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6. 6

   Question 6. How does Heck Tate respond when Atticus says Bob Ewell was out of his mind?

   • He says Ewell was too drunk to know better
   • He agrees that Ewell had lost his mind
   • He insists Ewell was not crazy, only mean
   • Correct answer: He blames the trial for driving Ewell mad

   Tate contradicts Atticus: Ewell "wasn't crazy, mean as hell" — a low-down skunk with enough liquor in him to make him brave enough to kill children, who would never have faced Atticus directly.

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7. 7

   Question 7. What does Scout realize the funny noise she heard during the attack was?

   • The ham costume being crushed
   • Correct answer: Jem's arm breaking
   • A branch snapping overhead
   • Ewell's knife hitting the chicken wire

   While retelling the attack, Scout stops short when she describes the funny noise and Jem's holler: she realizes it was the sound of Jem's arm breaking.

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8. 8

   Question 8. How does Scout describe Boo Radley's eyes?

   • Dark brown and intense
   • Blue and piercing
   • Correct answer: Gray and so colorless she thought he was blind
   • Green and feverish

   Scout describes Boo's eyes as gray and so washed out that she initially thinks he might be blind, reflecting his years of living indoors away from sunlight.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Where is Boo Radley standing when Scout points him out?

   • Next to the fireplace and mantelpiece
   • In the doorway to the hall
   • Leaning against the wall in a corner
   • Correct answer: By the window near Jem's bed

   The man has been leaning against the wall in the corner of Jem's room, arms folded, the entire time Scout has been giving her account.

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does Scout say when she recognizes Boo Radley?

    • You saved us.
    • Correct answer: Hey, Boo.
    • Mr. Arthur?
    • Thank you.

    Scout greets him with the simple, warm words "Hey, Boo" — one of the most famous lines in American literature, showing her natural empathy and acceptance.

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11. 11

    Question 11. How does Boo respond to Scout's greeting?

    • He reaches out to shake her hand
    • He speaks for the first time
    • Correct answer: He smiles timidly
    • He steps back into the shadows

    Boo responds with a shy, timid smile, revealing his gentle and bashful nature — a far cry from the fearsome figure of the children's imagination.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What is ironic about the ham costume in Chapter 29?

    • Correct answer: The costume that humiliated Scout onstage ended up saving her life
    • Jem had predicted something bad would happen because of it
    • Aunt Alexandra had wanted Scout to wear a different costume
    • It was supposed to represent Maycomb County pride

    Scout was embarrassed by the ham costume because she missed her cue during the pageant, but its rigid chicken wire frame deflected the knife that would have killed her.

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13. 13

    Question 13. What does Heck Tate notice on Bob Ewell's body that matches Scout's costume?

    • Shiny paint smeared across his hands and shirt
    • Correct answer: Little holes in his sleeves and puncture marks on his arms
    • Scratches on his face from the chicken wire
    • Scraps of brown cloth clutched in one of his hands

    After hearing how the costume was built, Tate explains the marks he saw: Ewell's sleeves were perforated with little holes, with one or two puncture marks on his arms to match — made by the chicken wire.

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14. 14

    Question 14. What theme reaches its fullest expression when Scout meets Boo?

    • The dangers of gossip and rumor in a small town
    • The importance of formal education
    • The failure of the courts to deliver equal justice
    • Correct answer: The mockingbird motif of protecting the innocent

    Boo is the novel's ultimate mockingbird — an innocent who has done nothing but good. Scout's gentle greeting and his timid smile turn the figure the children once feared into a shy, harmless neighbor.

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