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Worksheets

SAT reading

Total questions: 11

Worksheet time: 55mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What does the author suggest the purpose might be for the rosebush in the courtyard?

a)

To serve as a juxtaposition against the crimes that had been committed by the prisoners

b)

To commemorate the founders of the new colony who planted it

c)

to separate the section designated for the cemetery and the prison

d)

To pity the prisoner who came by and offer beauty in the time of dispair

2.

As used in line 20, the word "darker" most nearly means....

a)

having less light

b)

more tragic

c)

more secretive

d)

more sinister

3.

The author's description of the trees that once grew near the flower bush in lines 39-40 ("gigantic pines...overshadowed it") are meant to provide

a)

tense foreshadowing in advance of the story

b)

a celebration of the strength of the trees

c)

visual irony when viewed against the delicacy of a flower

d)

sound cues that convey frustration

4.

The contrast between the first paragraph and the last can best be described as

a)

unhappy people who live in a place that contains beauty

b)

a bleak opening to a dark story that nonetheless contains hope

c)

a dark prison in a place peopled by heroes

d)

sadness in the face of happiness

5.

The central idea of the passage is that

a)

a gloomy prison bears a hopeful symbol of comfort to prisoners and readers of this story

b)

nature finds a way to take a bleak and gloomy place and make it more pleasant

c)

founders of a new colony allotted a dismal plot of land to both a prison and a cemetery

d)

a rosebush has stood outside a prison for many centuries

6.

Which situation is most similar to the one described in lines 24-25 ("it seemed never to have known a youthful era")

a)

a playful bear cub

b)

a bitter old king

c)

a wandering fortune teller

d)

a naïve little child

7.

Why does the prison convey a feeling of doom, despite the beautiful rosebush near its entrance?

a)

The building itself looked menacing

b)

A throng of prisoners has gathered in front of its door

c)

The building is old and from another era

d)

It was built in a declining section of Boston

8.

Which choice provides the best evidence for the question....Why does the prison convey a feeling of doom, despite the beautiful rosebush near its entrance?

a)

Lines 4-5 ("a wooden edifice...timbered with oak")

b)

Lines 10-14 ("In accordance...first burial-ground")

c)

Lines 19-21 ("the wooden jail...and gloomy front")

d)

Lines 23-25 ("Like all...youthful era")

9.

By using the phrase "pluck one of its flowers, and present it to the reader" (line 47), the author

a)

indicates that the reader is about to hear a charming tale.

b)

implies that the reader is a saint, like Ann Hutchinson

c)

suggest that the reader may have committed crimes

d)

involves the reader as a participant in the story

10.

The rosebush in the story can be most closely compared to

a)

A splash of water on a hot day

b)

a flat tire on a getaway car

c)

a painting in a museum

d)

the first crocus of spring time

11.

Does the author's description of the rosebush in paragraph 2 show that the bush is symbolic or real, and which text evidence supports your answer?

a)

Symbolic; "which evidently found...a prison." (lines 28-30)

b)

Symbolic; "which might be...as he went in" (lines 32-34)

c)

Real; " and rooted almost...delicate gems" (lines 30-32)

d)

Real; "in token that... be kind to him" (lines 35-36)