To Kill a Mockingbird Challenge Quiz

To Kill a Mockingbird Challenge questions

The answers and an explanation for each question appear as you play, and on the answer-key page of the printout.

1. After Scout criticises Walter's table manners at dinner, what does Calpurnia's reaction in the kitchen reveal about her place in the household?
   She thinks the Cunninghams should not be asked back · She fears Atticus will blame her for the rudeness · She resents cooking for an extra child unannounced · She holds Scout to courtesy as a parent would
2. Why does Jem cry after Nathan Radley fills the knothole with cement?
   He has lost the only hiding place for his own treasures · He sees the gifts were meant for them and have stopped · He is afraid Nathan Radley will report him to Atticus · He believes the oak tree will die before next summer
3. Why does Miss Maudie think the children should be proud of Atticus after the rabid dog is shot?
   He did what the sheriff could not manage · He risked his life to protect the neighbours · He has a gift he chose never to show off · He proved braver than Sheriff Heck Tate
4. Why does Atticus call Mrs Dubose the bravest person he ever knew?
   She kept her garden going while gravely ill · She lived alone with only a companion to help · She spoke her mind to Atticus without any fear · She died having broken her hold on morphine
5. What does Atticus's answer reveal when Aunt Alexandra urges him to dismiss Calpurnia?
   He fears Calpurnia would spread talk about them · He thinks no one else in town would take the post · He will decide once the trial has been settled · He counts her as family and will not let her go
6. What finally breaks up the crowd outside the jail?
   Jem refuses to leave his father at the door · Mr Underwood shows a shotgun at his window · Scout talks to Mr Cunningham about his son · Heck Tate arrives and orders the men home
7. What is Atticus establishing when he gets Bob Ewell to write his name in court?
   Ewell never saw inside the room he describes · Ewell favours his left hand, as the bruises do · Ewell can barely write, so his word is unsafe · Ewell has changed his story since Tate's visit
8. Why does Atticus have Tom Robinson stand up during Mayella's cross-examination?
   To let Mayella identify him for the record · To prove he is taller than Mayella claimed · To show he bore no marks from a struggle · To show the jury that his left arm is useless
9. What do the people in the balcony do as Atticus leaves the courtroom?
   They rise to their feet as he passes below · They begin to sing one of the church hymns · They crowd the stairs to shake his hand · They stay seated until the judge has gone
10. What does Jem conclude about Arthur Radley at the end of his talk with Scout about Maycomb's social ranks?
    Arthur belongs to the lowest rank of all · Arthur is the only decent man left in town · Arthur is kept indoors by his brother Nathan · Arthur stays indoors because he chooses to
11. What does Scout learn from watching Aunt Alexandra go back to her guests after hearing the news?
    Her aunt prefers the circle to her family · Composure can itself be a kind of courage · Her aunt had never cared about Tom's fate · Grief should never be shown to outsiders
12. Why does Heck Tate insist that Bob Ewell fell on his own knife?
    To keep Arthur Radley out of the town's gaze · To protect Jem from a charge of manslaughter · To spare the Ewell children a public inquest · To save Atticus from defending his own son
13. What does Scout understand while standing on the Radley porch at the end of the novel?
    That Arthur had watched her from the window · How the street and its years looked to Arthur · That she will never see Arthur Radley again · That Jem had guessed the truth years before
14. What connects Mrs Dubose's month of reading aloud with Atticus's conduct at the trial?
    Both show Jem the value of keeping promises · Both show the old families still run the town · Both show courage kept up without reward · Both show that Maycomb respects obstinacy
15. What is the main change in Jem across the novel?
    He decides to become a lawyer like Atticus · His belief that Maycomb is fair does not last · He comes to share his aunt's view of class · He stops reading and gives up on school

More To Kill a Mockingbird practice: all To Kill a Mockingbird quizzes · characters quiz · themes quiz · plot recall quiz

Original questions written for Pagine. This book is in copyright, so questions paraphrase rather than quote it.