rap2016_ch12

Quiz for Document 12–5: Eliza Farnham, Conversation with a Newly Wed Westerner, 1846

Choose the best answer to each question.

1. According to the prairie farmer Farnham interviewed in the early nineteenth century, what was the sole purpose for which he got married?

He wanted someone to do domestic labor for him.

He wanted to raise his social standing in the community.

He wanted to have a son to take over his farm when he was old.

He was looking for a reliable source of sexual satisfaction.

2. What qualities did the farmer look for in a wife?

A beautiful and fashionable woman

A woman who was stout, strong, and hard-working

A well-educated homemaker who could raise his children

A woman of strong moral virtue who was devoutly religious

3. How did Farnham think the farmer viewed marriage?

As an inconvenience for someone who wanted to remain a bachelor

As a lifelong, moral and romantic commitment

As a simple business transaction

As a religious imperative for each person