CHAPTER 40 Quiz — The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
by Mark Twain
Comprehension Quiz: CHAPTER 40
What item does Huck forget to bring upstairs, prompting Tom to send him back to the cellar?
- A loaf of bread for the escape provisions
- A hunk of butter on a piece of corn-pone
- A candle to light the escape tunnel
- A knife to cut through Jim's chain
Where does Huck hide the butter when Aunt Sally appears?
- Inside his shirt pocket, pressed flat
- Behind a jar on the cellar shelf
- Under his hat, on top of his head
- In the folds of Tom's stolen dress
How many armed men are gathered in the sitting room?
- Ten farmers carrying pitchforks and rifles
- Twenty townsmen organized into two posses
- Fifteen farmers, every one with a gun
- A dozen neighbors armed with shotguns
What does Aunt Sally believe is happening when the butter melts down Huck's forehead?
- She thinks he has been shot by one of the farmers
- She thinks he has brain fever and his brains are oozing out
- She thinks he has been crying from guilt and fear
- She thinks he has been standing too near the fireplace
What is the "sheep-signal" used for in the escape plan?
- To distract the dogs guarding the property
- To coordinate the timing of the escape from the cabin
- To warn Jim that the farmers are approaching
- To signal the raft operator to bring the raft closer
How does Tom's presence alert the armed men during the escape?
- He accidentally fires his pistol while climbing the fence
- His britches catch on a splinter, snapping it loudly
- He trips over a root and cries out in pain
- He drops the lantern, shattering it on the ground
Why don't the pursuing dogs catch Huck, Tom, and Jim?
- The dogs lose the scent at the riverbank
- Huck throws food to distract the dogs
- The dogs recognize them and continue past toward the noise
- Jim speaks to the dogs calmly and they obey him
What injury does Tom sustain during the escape?
- A deep cut on his arm from the tunnel entrance
- A broken ankle from jumping off the fence
- A bullet wound in the calf of his leg
- A sprained wrist from sliding down the lightning rod
What does Jim's refusal to leave the injured Tom reveal about his character?
- He is afraid to navigate the raft alone at night
- He values human life above his own freedom and shows deep moral courage
- He wants to use Tom as leverage to negotiate his freedom
- He believes the doctor will help him escape to a free state
What historical figure does Tom reference while celebrating on the raft?
- Napoleon Bonaparte and his exile to Elba
- George Washington and the crossing of the Delaware
- Louis XVI and his execution during the French Revolution
- Julius Caesar and his crossing of the Rubicon
What elaborate precautions does Tom instruct Huck to take when fetching the doctor?
- Wear a disguise, carry a weapon, and travel only through the woods
- Blindfold the doctor, make him swear secrecy, and take away his chalk
- Send a coded letter to the doctor and meet at a secret location
- Pretend to be injured himself so the doctor will follow willingly
What literary device is most prominent in the melting butter scene?
- Foreshadowing of Tom's eventual injury during the escape
- Dramatic irony, since the reader knows it is butter while Aunt Sally does not
- Symbolism representing Huck's guilt about deceiving Aunt Sally
- Allegory for the institution of slavery melting under moral pressure
What contrast between Tom and Huck is revealed when Huck reports the armed men?
- Huck wants to fight while Tom wants to run away quietly
- Huck is terrified and wants to flee, while Tom is thrilled and wishes for more pursuers
- Huck remains calm while Tom panics about the danger
- Both boys are equally frightened but disagree on the escape route
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