1. VRBurton, English I Unit PreTest
Name_____________________________________________________
Date________________________________________________ Period______________
Unit I PreTest Data Cover Sheet
Mastered???!!!??? Test Objectives
Identify and explain plot structure (i.e., exposition, rising action, crisis/climax,
falling action, resolution/denouement) in short stories.
1. 2. 3. 4. 16. 17. 25.
Analyze how authors create the setting in a short story.
5. 6.
Define the concept of theme and identify the theme(s) in stories read.
20. 21.
Identify and explain characterization techniques in short stories.
7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 23.
Identify and explain the use of figurative language in short stories.
22. 24. 27. 28. 29. 30.
Analyze how authors create tone in short stories.
15.
Identify the point of view in a short story and analyze how point of view af-
fects the reader’s interpretation of the story.
13. 14.
Ongoing vocabulary development
18. 19. 26.

2. Unit 1 pre/post test
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____ 1. A struggle or clash that drives the plot is known as —
a. theme c. conflict
b. point of view d. characterization
____ 2. Which part of a plot usually contains the most tension?
a. Basic situation c. Climax
b. Complication d. Resolution
____ 3. What is chronological order?
a. The order in which objects are arranged in space
b. The logical order in which ideas are presented
c. A sequence that goes from question to answer
d. The time order in which things happen
____ 4. Foreshadowing is —
a. giving away the ending of a story
b. having a surprise twist at the end of a story
c. scaring the reader in a way the reader enjoys
d. hinting at what will happen later in a story
____ 5. Which of the following elements is not part of the setting of a story?
a. A character’s nickname c. The time period
b. The weather d. The location
____ 6. Which of the following images would create a scary mood?
a. The opening of a creaky door c. The smell of baking bread
b. A bird chirping in the early morning d. Two swans on a lake
____ 7. Describing a character’s fancy style of dress is an example of revealing character through —
a. setting c. speech
b. appearance d. contrast
____ 8. Characters reveal themselves most vividly through their —
a. actions c. ages
b. names d. places of birth
____ 9. By using indirect characterization, writers —
a. directly describe a character’s personality
b. provide little information about characters
c. prevent readers from forming their own opinions about characters
d. show, rather than tell, readers what a character is like
____ 10. Characters with internal conflicts —
a. struggle with opposing desires or emotions
b. are incapable of taking action
c. do not clash with other people
d. face threats from their family or community
____ 11. When writers convey the reasons for a character’s actions, they are describing the character’s —
a. outcome c. motivation
b. autobiography d. exposition
____ 12. A dynamic character is best described as a character who —
a. tells the story c. changes and develops

3. b. performs most of the actions in a story d. opposes the main character
____ 13. To tell a story from the point of view of one character, authors —
a. limit the number of characters in the story
b. do not provide information about other characters
c. tell about the thoughts and feelings of all the characters
d. use the first-person pronoun I to write the story
____ 14. A narrator in a story —
a. does not always tell the truth c. is always the main character
b. can be fully trusted by the reader d. describes the past, present, and future
____ 15. What is tone?
a. An author’s choice of words
b. An author’s characteristic writing style
c. An author’s attitude toward a subject, character, or the audience
d. The way one character interacts with other characters
____ 16. What is a surprise ending?
a. An unexpected but logical ending to a story
b. An ending that is not related to the rest of the plot
c. An ending that can be interpreted in several ways
d. An ending that presents a solution to a mystery
____ 17. Irony occurs when—
a. a character lies to other characters
b. there is a contrast between what is expected and what actually happens
c. characters have a disagreement
d. a writer shows that a character is wrong
____ 18. Which of the following sentences uses a definition as a context clue to hint at the meaning of the underlined
word?
a. The children who roamed the neighborhood and stole things were called marauders by the
community.
b. He had trouble climbing the precipitous slope.
c. When she heard about the incident, she sent the family her condolences.
d. At the end of the meeting, there was no sign of reconciliation between the two sides.
____ 19. The part of a word that establishes the word’s core meaning is the —
a. suffix c. derivation
b. prefix d. root
____ 20. Which of the following statements about theme is false?
a. The theme of a story is a central idea, or insight, about life.
b. The title of a story may provide a clue to the story’s theme.
c. The term theme refers to the subject of a story.
d. Writers may convey a story’s theme through what a character learns.
____ 21. The theme of a literary work —
a. is always unique
b. may recur in literature from different cultures and historical periods
c. is not subject to interpretation
d. is usually stated in the opening of the work
____ 22. What is a symbol?
a. An object that is given human characteristics
b. A person, an animal, or an object that has meaning in itself and stands for something
beyond itself as well
c. A reference to a person, a statement, or an event from literature, history, art, or mythology

4. d. An example provided by a writer to make a point
____ 23. Writers reveal the motivation of their characters to —
a. explain the characters’ backgrounds
b. resolve conflicts in stories
c. convey the reasons for the characters’ actions
d. create universal characters
____ 24. Both metaphors and similes —
a. compare two unlike things
b. are types of images
c. are words that a writer uses for the way they sound
d. hint at future events in a story’s plot
____ 25. When you draw a conclusion, you —
a. make a judgment or form an opinion based on evidence
b. make a prediction, or an educated guess
c. present an opposing view
d. support an argument
____ 26. What is a word’s denotation?
a. The word’s dictionary definition c. The way in which a writer uses the word
b. The history and origin of the word d. The emotions associated with the word
____ 27. The image of icy winds appeals to our sense of —
a. sight c. smell
b. touch d. taste
____ 28. What is the name for a word or phrase that describes one thing in terms of another and is not literally true?
a. Description c. Allusion
b. Figure of speech d. Inference
____ 29. “My pillow is soft and fluffy like a cloud” is an example of a(n) —
a. symbol c. metaphor
b. simile d. extended metaphor
____ 30. Personification occurs when —
a. characters express the author’s views
b. reality contrasts with our expectations
c. people are described as animals
d. something not human is given human qualities