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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. Who is the host in place of Dick Cavett?

2. As what is the Catholic Student Center also known?

3. For what are students at this university notorious?

4. Whose point of view does James present on the Cavett Show?

5. J. Edgar Hoover persecutes King, and who does he recruit in an unsuccessful attempt to stop King from meeting the Pope?

Short Essay Questions

1. General Carroll's DIA offers up analysis that the bombing is having no effect on Hanoi's ability to wage war. How do the Joint Chiefs respond?

2. Why can Michael not be buried by a Catholic priest?

3. Ritual requires a newly-ordained priest perform his first priestly blessing on his parents. How do his parents react?

4. Why is General Carroll successful in his government position?

5. Who are the Paulist Fathers?

6. What is James' opinion of segregation and white supremacy as a child?

7. How is the author resistant to authority?

8. How is Boston University a good fit for Father Carroll?

9. Why does James feel out of place among the working-class Irish novices?

10. How does the text show James is beginning to agree with his friends and associates who think he can follow Patrick's example of self-confidence and risk-taking by skating on his own thin ice?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When James is growing up, the Catholic Church is still hiding its accounts of sexual immorality.

Part 1) How does James deal with his struggle with his sexuality?

Part 2) How does he view the religious men around him? How they aid him in his choices?

Part 3) Predict James' reaction to the priests he knows, if he had learned about their breaking of the vow of celibacy. How might this knowledge have affected his decisions?

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the book James' opinion of the military, the government, and war change drastically.

Part 1) What does James think of these as a child? Why?

Part 2) How does his opinion change over time? Why?

Part 3) How do his actions match his change in opinion?

Essay Topic 3

The B-52 Bomber is an important symbol in this book.

Part 1) What is a B-52 Bomber? What is its purpose?

Part 2) How is the B-52 Bomber significant in this book?

Part 3) How does the B-52 Bomber symbolize James' opinion of war and the military?

(see the answer keys)

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