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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. Where does Lute tease Irma that other women may want to take him?

2. What industry did not boom for Gibbsville after 1925?

3. What day is it in Chapter 2, Part 2?

4. What does Al observe about the driver in the car ahead of him?

5. Who is Ed Charney?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the cycle of alcoholism complete for Julian now?

2. Explain how Julian's alcohol problem is escalating despite his attempts to act normally.

3. How does Irma feel superior to the Jewish people across the street?

4. What are Irma Fliegler's thoughts as she looks out the window on Christmas morning?

5. What does William English do for the first ten years after his father's death?

6. What coping mechanisms do Julian and Caroline employ to hide Julian's drunken incident from his parents?

7. What is the extent of prejudice in this story?

8. What were the repercussions of the coal strike in 1925?

9. What does Foxie tell Al about Ed's girlfriend, Helene?

10. What happens when Julian goes to Harry's house?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Julian's father has much disdain for Julian because he is very much like his grandfather. Explain how Julian is so much like his grandfather. What behaviors does he exhibit that are reminiscent of his grandfather? Are the traits behavioral or inherited? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

What is the social pecking order in Gibbsville? What criteria are used to determine social standing? Explain why someone like Harry Reilly who has more money than most of the other men is still not allowed into the inner circle of society.

Essay Topic 3

Money and status are very important to the characters in the novel. Choose at least three characters and cite how each one works to maintain a certain lifestyle or achieve a certain lifestyle.

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