The Night Watchman Quizzes

The Night Watchman Quiz 1

1 Who is the title character of the novel?
Doris Lauder

Patrice Paranteau

Thomas Wazhashk

Wood Mountain
2 What is Patrice's main conflict throughout the novel?
Getting a promotion at her factory

Finding and saving her older sister, Vera

Falling in love with Wood Mountain

Getting into college
3 What is the name of the tribe to which the characters belong?
Cherokee Nation

Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa

Lakota

Navajo Nation
4 What preoccupies Thomas during his night watch?
Worrying about money and his family

Thinking about his old classmate who occasionally haunts him

Writing letters to people in power to persuade them to help Turtle Mountain

Working extra hard to get a promotion
5 How long have Rose and Thomas been married?
30 years

28 years

22 years

33 years
6 Why does Patrice go to Minneapolis?
To live with her sister

To find her older sister who has gone missing

To go to school

To find better work
7 Whom do both Barnes and Wood Mountain have romantic feelings for?
Doris Lauder

Patrice

Vera

Valentine
8 Which domestic activity does Pixie most enjoy doing?
Sweeping the floor

Chopping wood

Sewing

Washing clothes
9 What is the relationship between Patrice and Thomas?
Thomas is Patrice's at-home teacher.

Thomas is Patrice's boss at the factory.

Thomas is her uncle and Patrice is his niece.

Thomas is a family friend of Patrice's family.
10 What is Juggie Blue's relationship to Wood Mountain?
Juggie is Wood Mountain's caretaker.

Juggie is Wood Mountain's mother.

Juggie is Wood Mountain's aunt.

Juggie is Wood Mountain's grandmother.
11 What job does Barnes have?
P.E. teacher and wrestling coach

Math teacher and boxing coach

English teacher and boxing coach

Science teacher and wrestling coach
12 Who is the ghost that haunts Thomas?
A cousin who died from alcoholism

An old friend who was killed by a local sheriff

An old classmate who was placed in a cellar by a missionary schoolteacher and died

A former colleague who died from an accident at the factory
13 What positive physical trait does Patrice consistently note about Doris Lauder?
Her laugh

Her perfumed smell

Her heart-shaped face

Her blonde hair
14 Why does Patrice nearly get in trouble on her first train ride?
She spills her lunch on her neighbor.

She refuses to change seats with the wife of a neighboring man.

She refuses to go to the bathroom.

She gets off at the wrong station.
15 How does Patrice survive when she goes to Minneapolis?
She stays with her cousin for free and spends her savings.

She works as a waterjack in a bar.

She works as a sex worker at a brothel.

She works as a waitress at a diner.
16 Who is Zhaanat?
The wife of Thomas

A coworker of Patrice

A schoolteacher of Patrice

The mother of Patrice, Vera, and Pokey
17 Why does Patrice dislike being called "Pixie"?
Pixie sounds too white.

Pixie reminds her too much of her older sister, who gave her that nickname.

Pixie is what her alcoholic dad calls her.

She thinks Pixie is a juvenile name and doesn't suit her worldly ambitions.
18 How is Patrice able to get off work to go to Minneapolis?
Her coworkers all demand one week of paid time off.

She quits her job at the factory.

She begs her boss to let her go on unpaid leave for a few days.

Valentine gives Patrice her sick days.
19 What euphemism does House Concurrent Resolution 108, the termination bill, use that Thomas notices?
Emancipation

Freedom

Liberty

Equality
20 Who is Thomas' primary antagonist?
Barnes the boxing coach

Arthur V. Watkins

Roderick the ghost

Wood Mountain
21 What job does Juggie Blue have?
She works as a healer.

She works as a cook at a local diner.

She works as a school clerk.

She works as a caretaker and cook for the schoolteachers.
22 What is one goal that Patrice has for her life?
To become famous

To become rich

To attend college

To marry well
23 What spurs Patrice to go to Minneapolis and look for her sister?
She has a dream that her sister is in danger.

She receives a letter from her sister.

She receives a note from a friend saying that her sister was spotted.

She hears from a cousin that her sister was spotted.
24 Why does Zhaanat ask her cousin Gerald to visit?
Gerald can help tutor Patrice while she is out of school.

Gerald has many connections in Minneapolis and can use them to find her.

Gerald can call upon the spirits and learn where Vera is located.

Gerald can help heal a sick family member.
25 Who wins the first boxing match in the novel?
No one

Wood Mountain

Lloyd Barnes

Joe Wobleszynski (Wobble)

Study Guide for The Night Watchman

The Night Watchman study guide contains a biography of Louise Erdrich, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

Read the Study Guide for The Night Watchman …

The Night Watchman

by Louise Erdrich

The Night Watchman Quiz 1

The Night Watchman Questions and Answers

Study Guide for The Night Watchman

Lesson Plan for The Night Watchman