The Night Watchman Quizzes

The Night Watchman Quiz 1

1 Who is the title character of the novel?
Thomas Wazhashk

Wood Mountain

Patrice Paranteau

Doris Lauder
2 What is Patrice's main conflict throughout the novel?
Finding and saving her older sister, Vera

Getting a promotion at her factory

Falling in love with Wood Mountain

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

Cherokee Nation

Lakota

Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa
4 What preoccupies Thomas during his night watch?
Working extra hard to get a promotion

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
5 How long have Rose and Thomas been married?
28 years

22 years

30 years

33 years
6 Why does Patrice go to Minneapolis?
To find better work

To go to school

To find her older sister who has gone missing

To live with her sister
7 Whom do both Barnes and Wood Mountain have romantic feelings for?
Doris Lauder

Patrice

Valentine

Vera
8 Which domestic activity does Pixie most enjoy doing?
Chopping wood

Sweeping the floor

Washing clothes

Sewing
9 What is the relationship between Patrice and Thomas?
Thomas is her uncle and Patrice is his niece.

Thomas is a family friend of Patrice's family.

Thomas is Patrice's at-home teacher.

Thomas is Patrice's boss at the factory.
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?
English teacher and boxing coach

Math teacher and boxing coach

P.E. teacher and wrestling coach

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

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 heart-shaped face

Her perfumed smell

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 go to the bathroom.

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

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 waitress at a diner.

She works as a sex worker at a brothel.

She works as a waterjack in a bar.
16 Who is Zhaanat?
The wife of Thomas

A schoolteacher of Patrice

The mother of Patrice, Vera, and Pokey

A coworker of Patrice
17 Why does Patrice dislike being called "Pixie"?
Pixie reminds her too much of her older sister, who gave her that nickname.

Pixie sounds too white.

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?
Valentine gives Patrice her sick days.

She quits her job at the factory.

Her coworkers all demand one week of paid time off.

She begs her boss to let her go on unpaid leave for a few days.
19 What euphemism does House Concurrent Resolution 108, the termination bill, use that Thomas notices?
Liberty

Freedom

Emancipation

Equality
20 Who is Thomas' primary antagonist?
Wood Mountain

Barnes the boxing coach

Arthur V. Watkins

Roderick the ghost
21 What job does Juggie Blue have?
She works as a cook at a local diner.

She works as a healer.

She works as a caretaker and cook for the schoolteachers.

She works as a school clerk.
22 What is one goal that Patrice has for her life?
To attend college

To become famous

To marry well

To become rich
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 note from a friend saying that her sister was spotted.

She receives a letter from her sister.

She hears from a cousin that her sister was spotted.
24 Why does Zhaanat ask her cousin Gerald to visit?
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.

Gerald can help tutor Patrice while she is out of school.
25 Who wins the first boxing match in the novel?
Wood Mountain

Lloyd Barnes

Joe Wobleszynski (Wobble)

No one

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