Harriet Tubman Novel Study Guide

 Harriet Tubman was known as “the Moses of her people.” What inference about Tubman’s character can you make from this comparison? (RI 8.1)

a. Tubman helped people escape slavery.

b. Tubman was a Christian.

c. Other people struggled to trust Tubman.

d. People looked up to Tubman, but she was unable to help them.

What literary device is the use of “Moses” in the text? (RI 8.4)

a. Simile- a comparison using like or as

b. allusion-a brief mention of something or someone well known

c. idiom- a group of words with a figurative, non-literal meaning

d. Personification-giving human qualities to non-human things

Make an inference about why the masters may have heard inauthentic birdcalls. (RI 8.1)

a. Tubman would set birds loose to serve as a distraction to the masters.

b. The call was a special signal that alerted the slaves.

c. The sound was made by the masters to alert each other of Tubman’s presence.

d. The birds were out of season.

Why would Tubman usually take the slaves on a Saturday night? (RI 8.1)

a. The masters had parties and were too distracted to hear the slaves.

b. Sunday was a day of rest, so no one could look for them until Monday. 

c. The slaves were well rested since they had Saturdays off.

d. The slaves had free time on Saturdays and could get away easier.

How is it ironic that the masters would go to church on the Sundays after slaves went missing? (RI 8.4)

a. It’s situational irony because you’d expect churchgoers to treat human beings equally.

b. It’s situational irony because you’d expect the slaves to go to church as well.

c. It’s dramatic irony because the reader knows that the preachers are aware of the escape.

d. It’s dramatic irony because the reader knows the slaves actually haven’t left yet. 

What is the genre of the novel "Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad?

 science fiction

 historical fiction

-autobiography

 biography

Why does the author most likely reference Thomas Sims, Jerry, and Shadrach on page 145? (RI 8.6)

a. The names are famous and stand out to readers.

b. The names serve as a reminder that some slaves reach Canada.

c. The author shows us more about several of the boys on the journey with Tubman. 

d. By pointing out specific names, it shows that the Fugitive Slave Law was real and in effect.

On Tubman’s first stop on the Underground Railroad, the man wouldn’t let the group stay. Why was this? (RI 8.1)

a. He decided to have slaves of his own.

b. His wife had been caught and arrested.

c. It was too large of a group and his home had been searched.

d. He stopped trusting Tubman because of her gun.

What do the repeated references to eleven fugitives, eleven thousand dollars, and Canada suggest about Tubman’s mission and her character? (RI 8.2)

a. The mission carried a huge risk and she had to be determined to attempt the challenge.

b. It builds suspense towards the inevitable failure of the journey.

c. Tubman was overconfident in her ability to save the people.

d. Tubman only viewed the slaves in monetary terms.

Make an inference for why Tubman tells stories about William Still and Frederick Douglass. (RI 8.1)

a. She wants to remind them of the consequences of quitting.

b. The two slave masters serve as a reminder of where they came from.

c. She motivates them with stories of brave people who embarked on similar journeys. 

d. Still and Douglass made mistakes that should not be repeated.