Extracts from Adam's Diary

Which of the following best describes how the narrator, Adam, views Eve throughout most of the story?

• Adam pities Eve because she is young and cannot take care of herself.

• Adam regards Eve as a threat to both herself and the other animals, so he keeps a close eye on her.

• Adam finds Eve both annoying and confounding for her endless energy and curiosity.

• Adam loves Eve even though he feels she has many minor flaws that can be corrected.

What does the naming process reveal about the narrator?

• The narrator believes that names should just come to a person (inspired by what a thing looks like), revealing that he is whimsical and creative.

• The narrator is annoyed by Eve’s seemingly random names, indicating that he prefers logical purpose but lacks her intuition and spontaneity.

• he narrator believes that it was his duty set by God to name the animals, showing that, to him, all names are sacred

• The narrator likes simple names for things, like the “estate” for the Garden of Eden (named by Eve), suggesting his lack of creativity.

PART A: In the first half of the story, what does Adam find most annoying about Eve, and why is it significant?

• Adam finds Eve’s talking most annoying; this is significant because by the end of the story her silence will be the thing he fears the most.

• Adam finds Eve’s curiosity most annoying because he lacks it; this is significant because it is this curiosity that gets them kicked out of the Garden later, leading them to a better life.

• Adam finds Eve’s experiments with animals most annoying; this is significant because these experiments teach Eve how not to harm Cain or the rest of their children.

• Adam finds Eve’s meddling in the Garden most annoying; this is significant because it is this meddling that gets them kicked out of the Garden later.

PART B: Which of the following quotes best supports the answer to Part A?

• "This new creature with the long hair is a good deal in the way. It is always hanging around and following me about." (Paragraph 1)

• "She has littered the whole estate with execrable names and offensive signs:" (Paragraph 10)

• "She has taken up with a snake now. The other animals are glad, for she was always experimenting with them and bothering them...." (Paragraph 23)

• "At first I thought she talked too much; but now I should be sorry to have that voice fall silent and pass out of my life." (Paragraph 37)

PART A: As it is used in paragraph 25, the word “variegated” most closely means

• Boring

• Joyous

• Depressing

• Eventful

PART B: Which of the following quotes best supports the answer to Part A?

• I escaped last night, and rode a horse all night as fast as he could go” (Paragraph 25)

• “...I was riding through a flowery plain where thousands of animals were grazing, slumbering, or playing with each other....” (Paragraph 25)

• “I found this place, outside the Park, and was fairly comfortable for a few days, but she has found me out.” (Paragraph 25)

• “I see I should be lonesome and depressed without her, now that I have lost my property.” (Paragraph 25)

How does paragraph 25 contribute to one of the story’s central themes?

• It is the moment that the Garden begins to wither and decay because Eve ate the apple, contributing to the theme of Death.

• Adam and Eve eat the apples to gain knowledge but at the cost of their promise to God, thus contributing to the theme of Betrayal.

• Eve eats the forbidden apples for knowledge but knows breaks her oath to God, thus contributing to the theme of Education and Power—in that knowledge is power, but power corrupts.

• Once the apples are eaten, Adam begins to view Eve more as a companion and an equal, thus contributing to the theme of Men and Women (and the relationship between them).

What is the author’s likely purpose for including Adam’s confusion about who Cain is?

• To make the story more mysterious and suspenseful

• To suggest that Adam is not at all intelligent

• To further add humor to the story through dramatic irony

• To imply that Adam is in denial about being the only male human alive