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. After realizing that he was the victim of the fall, what did Sacks do?
2. Essentially, why could Sacks not tense up the quadriceps?
3. What did Sacks think about as he moved down the mountain?
4. In order to escape being caught on the mountain all night, what was the latest possible time Sacks could reach help?
5. What analogy does Sacks use to describe his left leg's failure during therapy?
Short Essay Questions
1. How does the quote at the beginning of Chapter Four compare to Sacks's own words which begin the chapter?
2. 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?
3. What is the literary effect of Sacks's description of his injury? Why do you think the injury is not detailed later?
4. What advice did Sacks's maiden aunt give him? How does this advice come across on the printed page?
5. What obvious differences existed between the injuries in Sacks's left leg and his right leg? What was the difference in their effects?
6. How does Sacks describe the bull? How does this description show his change of heart from the time he read the warning sign?
7. All of Chapter Five is devoted to the moment Sacks took his first step. What literary effect does this have on the book?
8. While descending the mountain, what vision did Sacks cling to? Why do you think this was the picture he chose?
9. When Sacks's right arm and shoulder were immobilized, what happened? What did this tell him about a person's body image?
10. How did Sacks become the music which he heard in his head? How might this have saved him?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Describe the world of the convalescent home. How did Sacks change and grow stronger here? What did he learn about himself? How did the convalescent home allow him to approach the world again?
Essay Topic 2
"We have art, in order that we may not perish from the truth" (Nietzsche, Chapter Three, pg 89). Why did Sacks believe this? How did he incorporate this idea into his recovery?
Essay Topic 3
How does Sacks describe his first ten minutes of walking again (Chapter Five, pgs 123-24)? How did this return him to the moment of humanity? How does this compare to Donne's quote at the beginning of Chapter Two?
|
This section contains 1,726 words (approx. 6 pages at 300 words per page) |
|
