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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What excuse does Malison give to Bethany for not going out for a drink with her in "After Malison"?
2. What does Sedaris think every male reader of "Giantess" longs for?
3. Which of the following words/phrases is NOT part of Khe Sahn's vocabulary according to Jocelyn in "Season's Greetings..."?
4. What genre is "Season's Greetings to Our Friends and Family"?
5. According to the narrator, what type of adults most often visit Santa in "Santaland Diaries"?
Short Essay Questions
1. How does the narrator of "Barrel Fever" feel about the word "nice"? Why does he feel this way?
2. What does the narrator of "Giantess" expect his fellow workers to do as they are waiting in the apartment of an extremely rich client? What do they actually do?
3. How does the narrator of "Diary of A Smoker" feel about smoking?
4. Who is Trudy Chase in "Barrel Fever"? How does the narrator react to a phone call from Trudy?
5. What does the narrator do to Marty's motorcycle in "Jamboree"? Who does Marty believe is responsible for the damages?
6. Describe "the Walrus" in "Santaland Diaries".
7. What connection do the elves working at Santa Land have with "One Life to Live" in "Santaland Diaries"?
8. What are the two reasons the narrator gives for boycotting Malison's reading in "After Malison"?
9. What do IV and PCD stand for in "Barrel Fever"? What is the significance of these acronyms for the narrator?
10. Which elf duty is the narrator's least favorite in "Santaland Diaries"? Why does he feel this way?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
One of the recurrent topics in the collection of short stories "Barrel Fever" is family. Select three of the stories dealing with this topic and:
1) explain what the story says about family
2) demonstrate how the topic is developed in the story
Then explain what you think Sedaris' overall commentary on families is in the novel as a whole.
Be sure to use specific examples from the stories to support your ideas.
Essay Topic 2
Imagine if one of the stories in this collection was missing from it. Choose one of the stories and "remove" it from the collection. Write an essay:
1) explaining the role that the story plays in the collection,
2) describing how the novel would be different without the story, and
3) comment on the quality of the book without the story: Would it be better or worse? Why?
Be sure to use specific examples from the stories to support your ideas.
Essay Topic 3
Each of the stories in "Barrel Fever" has its own unique narrator. Select 4 of the stories and:
1) describe the narrator of each story,
2) discuss the role the narrator plays in the story, and
3) examine the ways the narrator influences how the reader experiences the story.
Be sure to use evidence from the stories to support your ideas.
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This section contains 1,095 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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