Print
Word
PDF
|
| Name: _________________________ | Period: ___________________ |
This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What is the title of Chapter One?
2. Where did Sacks's accident occur?
3. How has Sacks written the book A Leg to Stand On?
4. What does Sacks think of when he remembers the Biblical words, "To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. A time to be born, and a time or die; a time . . ." (pg 26)?
5. How old was Sacks when he discovered the beauty of the world through the Pythagorean theorem?
Short Essay Questions
1. How did Sacks treat the warning sign about the bull? What does this reveal about his attitude?
2. During his first night out of the hospital, Sacks wept in the doorway of the convalescent home. Briefly summarize his experiences so far to explain the tears.
3. To whom did Sacks dedicate the book A Leg to Stand On? Why might he have chosen this person?
4. What did Sacks think when he saw his left leg for the first time in two weeks? How did his own thoughts tie into the doctor's summary of the recovery?
5. How does Sacks think of his injury and recovery? Is this what you might have expected?
6. How does the quote at the beginning of Chapter Four compare to Sacks's own words which begin the chapter?
7. At the beginning of Chapter One, Sacks quotes Thomas Mann to say that the silent world receives and tolerates man but always remains menacing (pg 1). How does this relate to Sacks's experience in the world?
8. What does the detail from Sacks's journal explain? How does this excerpt capture the split between doctor and patient, which is captured in one person?
9. While descending the mountain, what vision did Sacks cling to? Why do you think this was the picture he chose?
10. Patients in the hospital are treated with fear and sometimes horror by the healthy people who visit them. Using Sacks's thoughts, what might be the reason for this?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
What would have made the state of Limbo tolerable? What parts did the ideas of "hole" and "Hell" play in this state? Did scotoma lead to Limbo or explain it?
Essay Topic 2
Note Dr. Swan's attitude toward Sacks's injury compared to Sacks's attitude. How do they differ? In Sacks's attitude toward his own injury, what are the elements of a physician? What are the elements of a patient? What does he think of Dr. Swan's professional opinion?
Essay Topic 3
How does Sacks use dialogue throughout the story? How is the dialogue divided among the people in his life? What are the varying tones of the dialogue? What does the use of dialogue contribute to the story?
|
This section contains 1,768 words (approx. 6 pages at 300 words per page) |
|
