View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Jim do during the winter months?

2. Why kind of personality does Jim have?

3. How does Jim abuse men?

4. What does Norman take away from his experience with Jim?

5. How does Norman try to avoid altercations with Jim?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens when Jim invites Norman to his home for dinner?

2. How does Norman come to feel about Jim?

3. How does Norman perceive Jim?

4. What happens when Norman returns to college?

5. What question does Jim not ask Norman at dinner?

6. Why does Norman make this decision?

7. Where is the location of the woods where Norman works?

8. What is Jim's wintertime job?

9. What is the content of Jim's final letter to Norman?

10. What does Norman agree to do by the end of the summer?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Neal and Paul's alcoholism seem starkly out of place in the pristine region of the Blackfoot River area. Explain the irony of the personal angst set against this breathtaking backdrop. Also explain why personal problems can happen even in the most beautiful of locations.

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast Norman and Jim Grierson. They seem to be complete opposites, yet Norman agrees to work with Jim. What would make Norman push past his personal distaste for Jim and agree to the working arrangement? Do you think Norman ever found any redeeming qualities in Jim?

Essay Topic 3

Explain the irony in the situation of the cook losing all his money after he has cheated to win it in the poker game. All through the story the cook has been rude and disdainful to Norman, yet it is Norman who finds the cook beaten and broken in an alley and gives him all the money he has. What does it say about Norman's character that he can rise above the difficulties he has experienced with the cook and act like a good human being? Would the cook have done the same for Norman? Explain your position.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 651 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample