Tom Sawyer Whitewashes a Fence

Tom’s “great, magnificent inspiration” in paragraph 1 is important to developing the plot of the story. What is Tom’s inspiration?

• He develops a plan for tricking the other boys into doing most of his work.

• He decides to bribe the boys with his “worldly wealth” in order to get the boys to paint the fence.

• He thinks of ways to make himself enjoy the task of painting the fence.

• He focuses on the exciting things around him to distract himself from his work.

• He asks his friends to help him so they can all go swimming together.

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In “Whitewashing the Fence,” the author writes Tom and Ben’s dialogue using dialect, a special variety of language that includes misspelling and informal words, to

• build suspense about what will happen next.

• help establish the rural nature of the setting.

• establish a conflict between Tom and Ben.

• help characterize Tom and Ben as ignorant.

• make a point about human nature.

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In paragraph 1, the author uses phrases like “free boys,” “delicious expeditions,” and “pure freedom” to suggest that

• Tom resents his aunt for making him work.

• Tom believes he should not be made to do chores.

• Tom is tired from working so hard on the fence.

• Tom highly values time spent having fun.

• Tom thinks the task of painting the fence is enjoyable.

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How do paragraphs 2 through 6, in which Ben pretends to be a steamboat, contribute to the development of the passage?

• They emphasize the many distractions Tom faces.

• They hint at Tom’s plan for getting his work done.

• They highlight the friendship between Tom and Ben.

• They foreshadow the fact Ben will soon be working.

• They characterize Ben as someone who likes to show off.

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What event in the passage results from the answer to Question #4?

• Tom focuses on painting the fence instead of choosing to play.

• Tom tells his friend why he likes whitewashing.

• Tom tricks Ben into choosing to whitewash the fence instead of playing.

• Tom gets many boys to paint the fence.

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Which two statements best express the reasons for Tom’s success in getting the other boys to do his work for him?

• Tom has the ability to keep his true feelings hidden.

• Tom is popular with others and a natural leader.

• Tom accepts that some situations are beyond his control.

• Tom dislikes thinking people will make fun of him.

• Tom understands how to make people feel envious.

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Which excerpt from the passage provides the best evidence for the answers to Question #6?

• Soon the free boys would come tripping along on all sorts of delicious expeditions, and they would make a world of fun of him for having to work—the very thought of it burnt him like fire.

• He got out his worldly wealth and examined it—bits of toys, marbles, and trash; enough to buy an exchange of WORK, maybe, but not half enough to buy so much as half an hour of pure freedom.

• “Like it? Well, I don’t see why I oughtn’t to like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?” That put the thing in a new light.

• And when the middle of the afternoon came, from being a poor poverty-stricken boy in the morning, Tom was literally rolling in wealth.

• He had discovered a great law of human action, without knowing it—namely, that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain.

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Which paragraph shows Tom convincing Ben the whitewashing is a rewarding experience?

• 16

• 17

• 19

• 25

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To convince Ben that Ben should want to whitewash the fence, Tom shows Ben that whitewashing requires special skill. In which paragraph does Tom convey the idea that whitewashing requires special skill.

• 16

• 19

• 25

• 27

Which statement best expresses the main theme of “Whitewashing the Fence”?

• Friends make sacrifices to help each other.

• People often value things that seem hard to get.

• Work can be enjoyable if one has the right attitude.

• Time is more precious than money or material goods.

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