Chapter XIII: House-Warming Quiz — Walden Pond

What does Thoreau gather at the river meadows in October?

• Cranberries and blueberries
• Wild grapes and apples
• Mushrooms and herbs
• Corn and squash

What materials does Thoreau use to build his chimney?

• New bricks ordered from town
• Second-hand bricks with mortar made from pond sand
• Fieldstones gathered from his bean-field
• Clay bricks he molds himself

According to Thoreau, what is "the most vital part of the house"?

• The roof
• The cellar
• The fireplace
• The door

Why does Thoreau regret switching from an open fireplace to a cooking stove?

• The stove was more expensive to operate
• The stove concealed the fire, and he felt he lost a companion
• The stove produced dangerous fumes
• The stove did not heat the house as well

What does Thoreau describe as "an independent structure, standing on the ground, and rising through the house to the heavens"?

• A tree growing beside his cabin
• The chimney
• A ladder he built
• The pond itself

How does Thoreau transport sand for plastering from across the pond?

• He carries it in bags on foot
• He brings it by boat
• He waits until the pond freezes and slides it on ice
• He hires a neighbor with a cart

What does Thoreau call the ground-nut (Apios tuberosa)?

• The fruit of the forest
• The potato of the aborigines
• Nature's hidden treasure
• The root of the pilgrim

What personification does Thoreau use to describe fire in his house?

• A dangerous intruder
• A cheerful housekeeper
• An angry god
• A lazy servant

True or false: A spark from Thoreau's fire catches his bed while he is outside splitting wood.

True or false: Thoreau burns lime from seashells he collects at the ocean shore.

In the chapter, what does "torpid" mean when Thoreau writes that his body "began to grow torpid" after long exposure to cold?

• Energetic and alert
• Physically numb and sluggish
• Feverishly warm
• Anxious and restless

What does "palaver" mean when Thoreau writes that parlor language would "degenerate into palaver wholly"?

• Poetic verse
• Empty, prolonged talk
• Foreign dialect
• Whispered secrets

What does "expiatory" mean when Thoreau writes that Romans made "an expiatory offering" before cutting trees?

• Celebratory
• Serving to atone for wrongdoing
• Purely decorative
• Required by law