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 Nan say is the cause of her life "made up of disappointments" (32)?

2. Who is Camille?

3. What does working on the Hardmann Roe case remind Frank and Alan of?

4. From context, what is likely true about the Century Club?

5. What are the details of the thick towels, Biedermeier desk, and private school meant to convey?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the difference in Frank's and Alan's attitudes toward marriage?

2. What is "Hardmann Roe," and what role does it play in shaping Frank's and Alan's careers?

3. Who is Brenda, and what is Franks' relationship with her in the first section of the text?

4. What does Frank tell Nan is the difference between men and women?

5. What angers Frank so much at the bar and restaurant called "Jack's'?

6. What do Frank and Alan do two months before their big case is supposed to be tried, and why do people tell them it is a bad idea?

7. What is the story that Nan Christie tells Frank about trying to find someone to date and marry?

8. Who is Nan Christie, and what is her relationship to Frank?

9. In what way is Alan's reaction to Nan different from Frank's?

10. On page 29, what does Brenda say about "thin-lipped women," and how does Frank respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When Alan and Frank exchange a look in the hotel bar in Spoleto after Eda has refused to sleep with Alan, Alan understands Frank's intentions without discussion. "They were like thieves," the narrator comments (45). In what sense are Frank and Alan like thieves? Write an essay that considers not just this scene but the entirety of the story as you make and defend a claim about Frank's and Alan's willingness to "steal" to get what they want. Be sure to support your ideas with evidence from the text.

Essay Topic 2

Are Frank and Alan happy with their lives and achievements? Write an essay that uses evidence from the text to support a claim about whether either man understands how to make himself truly happy.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay that examines both the causes and consequences of Frank's restlessness. Support your claims with evidence from the text.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 911 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample