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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 drink does the narrator drink at the bar throughout the book?

2. The narrator writes in Chapter 10, "With my mind even and upright and abiding nowhere, as ____ would say."

3. What friend of Monsanto's accompanies the group to the cabin in Chapter 17?

4. In Chapter 14, which character is described as a strange kid from Oregon with hair like Raul Castro?

5. What name did Cody's character have in "On the Road"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who arrives in Chapter 5? How does Jack's perspective change after this visit?

2. What is the purpose of Jack's and Arthur Ma's conversation in Chapter 19?

3. What quotes of Emerson does Kerouac use in Chapter 7? What do these propel the narrator to do?

4. In what ways does the narrator reflect upon the history of Big Sur in Chapter 7?

5. How does the narrator feel about himself in the end of Chapter 1?

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

7. What is Jack's reaction to learning his cat has died?

8. In Chapter 5, how does Jack's relationship to nature change?

9. What in Chapter 3 is an example of foreshadowing?

10. Why is the cabin as isolated as it is? What activity takes Jack an entire day in Chapter 6?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the character of Billie Dabney. How is her relationship to the narrator illustrated? How do her actions contribute to the actions of the protagonist?

Essay Topic 2

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 3

Describe the imagery which the author uses in the final chapters of the novel as Jack descends into madness. What contrasts are used to express this?

(see the answer keys)

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