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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. How much money does Sherman withdraw from his account the day before his arrest?

2. Where is Sherman McCoy accosted by a group of reporters in Chapter 23?

3. On what day of the week does Chapter 19 take place?

4. Who is suing Sherman McCoy's real estate agent at the end of the novel?

5. With what media outlet is Reverend Bacon speaking by phone at the beginning of Chapter 25?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why has no one heard of Roland Auburn even though he has been in the papers?

2. What aspects of Sherman McCoy's life are disrupted by the Henry Lamb case?

3. Which of Killian's promises are broken during his arrest?

4. How does Sherman's opinion of his father change in Chapter 21 and why?

5. What does the mayor decide regarding the McCoy case?

6. Why does Judge Kovisky decide to bring Sherman to his chambers along with the attorneys?

7. Describe the scene at the Criminal Court at the end of Chapter 31.

8. What does Sherman tell Judy about his relationship with Maria?

9. What promises does Tommy Killian make Sherman McCoy regarding his arrest?

10. In what way does Shelly Thomas disagree with Kramer about the McCoy case?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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?

Essay Topic 2

Peter Fallow is a catalyst for much of the action in the novel. He is also the most successful of the major characters, rising from the ashes of his own inequity over the course of the novel. Write an essay about the Fallow character as a satiric perversion of the "rags to riches" story. Does Fallow ever accomplish anything on his own? If talent is not his ticket to stardom, what is in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Tom Wolfe's New York is a den of tigers, comprised largely of ambitious and venal men willing to exploit any angle to accumulate and keep power. Write an essay on the power-brokers of Bonfire of the Vanities:

Part 1) Abe Weiss is a subtly racist politician in a city of minorities. What does he do over the course of the novel to appease his minority constituents? How does he aggrandize himself in doing this? What is his aim?

Part 2) Reverend Bacon is a classic pious charlatan. What does he preach to his constituents and his opponents? What are his true designs in preaching this message?

Part 3) Larry Kramer likes to imagine himself as a savvy player in corrupt system and a defender of the common man. What does he want for his good works? What does he consider his prize for this?

(see the answer keys)

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