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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. What novel does the narrator say he read in the shack with a shrug in Chapter 7?

2. What sound is overwhelming to the narrator when he exits the cab in Chapter 3?

3. How many miles does the narrator have to hike in Chapter 10?

4. Who is singing like Chet Baker in Chapter 19?

5. How high is the cliff the narrator sees the morning of Chapter 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where is Jack in the beginning of the novel? What were his initial plans and why did they change?

2. What story does Jack relate in Chapter 6 of Hollywood? Why does the author relate this information?

3. In what ways does Jack communicate or interact with the animals at Big Sur in Chapter 8?

4. What does Jack describe as his feelings for the cabin in Chapter 6? To whom does he speak to of his feelings?

5. What does Jack decide to do in Chapter 9? How does he go about leaving?

6. What animal does Jack encounter in Chapter 4? How does he describe this and the landscape?

7. How does the protagonist view the cliffs and his surroundings in Chapter 4?

8. What does Jack recall of George Baso in Chapter 15?

9. How does Jack describe the nature surrounding him in Chapter 3?

10. What is the description of the boarding house where his friends live in Chapter 12?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss and describe the religious and spiritual allusions in Big Sur. What religions and philosophies does the author refer to and in what context?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the literary allusions in the book. What poets, authors, and thinkers does the narrator read, quote from, and discuss? What do these lead the reader to understand?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the character of Jack Duluoz in Big Sur. What are his principle characteristics? What are his objectives and obstacles in the plot?

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