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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 prominent power-player is arriving at the soiree just ahead of the McCoys?

2. With whom is Sherman on the phone when he sees the Henry Lamb coverage in the City Light?

3. In what New York Metropolitan neighborhood does the Prologue take place?

4. To which literary character do the assistant DA's in the Bronx Courthouse compare Abe Weiss?

5. What is the condition of Henry Lamb at the end of Chapter 6?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is Roland Auburn?

2. In Chapter 13, what are Sherman's thoughts about telling Judy the truth?

3. Describe the speech Lord Buffing makes.

4. Why is the Herbert 92X trial becoming overblown at the Bronx courthouse?

5. What transformation occurs in Fallow's outlook on life during this chapter?

6. Describe Sherman McCoy's history with Freddy Button.

7. Why does Sherman McCoy have to go to the toilet at his firm to read the newspaper?

8. After hearing Sherman's story, what is Freddy's concern?

9. What does Sherman discover in the papers in Chapter 14?

10. What do Maria and Sherman ultimately decide to do regarding the Bronx car incident?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay comparing the character arcs of Sherman McCoy and Larry Kramer. Are the two men mirrors of each other in the novel? How do they both view their lives and the people who care about them? Does Kramer's resentment of the privileged WASP existence also indicate a desire to have that life?

Essay Topic 2

Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities is famous for its honest and vicious portrayals of persons of all races. Under the heavy satire of figures like Reverend Bacon and Roland Auburn are some maudlin and disturbing observations about black urban poverty. Write an essay on this topic:

Part 1) Early in the novel, Sherman panics while at a payphone in the rain because he sees a young black man approaching him. What assumptions does Sherman make about New York? What does this say about the social divide in New York?

Part 2) When at last the truth of why Henry Lamb and Roland Auburn were together the night Henry was run down comes out, Weiss quickly buries it. Why was Henry hanging out with Roland? Why didn't he leave when things turned violent? What constant pressures were on this nonviolent young man?

Part 3) What happens to the Lamb family at the end of the novel? How are they the ultimate losers in this elaborate game of politics, media, and legal maneuvering?

Essay Topic 3

In Tom Wolfe's novel, the media is the true arbiter of justice in New York City. If it does not involve a photo opportunity, it does not count and will not register in the public consciousness: Write an essay about the role of the media and how it skews public opinion to a certain end in the novel.

Part 1) How does Peter Fallow's initial coverage of the Henry Lamb hit-and-run turn a "piece of shit" into a priority for the DA? What does Fallow do to juice the scant information?

Part 2) How does the presence of television and newspaper coverage transform Reverend Bacon's meager demonstration in the Bronx into a public movement? What difference does it make in the life of the Henry Lamb case?

Part 3) How does the presence of the media at the Criminal Courts Building alter the nature of Sherman McCoy's arrest? How do his chances of success change?

(see the answer keys)

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