Short Story Unit Test Study Guide

Question 1

A Sound of Thunder

Answer 1

Is about a man who joins a hunting expedition to the past. In this quest to kill a dinosaur for sport, Eckels steps on a butterfly, altering the future dramatically.

Question 2

An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

Answer 2

Takes place during the American Civil War. It follows the protagonist, Peyton Farquhar, as he awaits his execution by hanging. Just as the noose tightness around his neck, Farquhar experiences a vivid and surreal escape attempt.

Question 3

The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas

Answer 3

A utopia where everyone experiences great bliss at the expense of a single child who is locked away beneath the city to live in utter isolation and squalor.

Question 4

Plot Elements

Answer 4

Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution

Question 5

Theme

Answer 5

The subject of a talk, a person’s thoughts, or an exhibition; a topic

Question 6

Twist Ending

Answer 6

A literary technique that introduces a radical change in the direction or expected.

Question 7

Foreshadowing

Answer 7

Being warned or indicates (a future event)

Question 8

Science Fiction

Answer 8

Fiction based on imagined future scientific or technological advances and major social or environmental changes.

Question 9

Historical Fiction

Answer 9

A literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the setting of particular real historical events.

Question 10

Philosophical Fiction

Answer 10

Any fiction that devotes a significant portion of its content to the sort of questions addressed by philosophy.