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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 the auctioneer give his pitch?

2. What does Lester burn in the hearth to start a fire?

3. On what structure is the flapping door that Ballard hears on the highway?

4. What color does the smith say the blade should turn in the second heat?

5. What kind of return does the auctioneer promise on the investment of Ballard's property?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the scene created by McCarthy at the beginning of the novel.

2. What changes does Ballard undergo in Chapter 14 (pp. 40-43)?

3. Describe the Dumpkeeper's situation at home.

4. How do people react to Ballard in the Six-Mile Church?

5. What news does Darfuzzle give Ballard?

6. What process does the blacksmith use to sharpen Ballard's axe head?

7. How do the Deputy's plans for the day change in Chapter 17 (pp. 48-49)?

8. What transpires between Ballard and the woman he finds sleeping on Frog Mountain?

9. Describe the boxing match that happens at the end of this section.

10. Why does the unnamed man in Chapter 5 (pp. 17-18) decide he does not like Lester Ballard?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Lester Ballard's interaction with animals is in many ways a reflection of his interaction with human beings. Write an essay about his individual meetings with animals and how they coincide with later meetings with people (his trailing his gun on a cat as he does Greer, his accidentally killing the cow as he thoughtlessly assaults the Sleeping Woman). From these individual meetings, develop a thesis about his development - or lack thereof - of relationships.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay about the Sheriff. Is he an effective law enforcer? Is he a principled man with a vision for his County? Write your essay in three paragraphs, detailing three specific episodes in the text that are driven by the Sheriff. Detail the episodes and examine how effective the character is in achieving his objective.

Essay Topic 3

By the end of the novel, Lester Ballard has accumulated a strange menagerie of items in his cave. Each has a particular meaning and function for him, and each reflects a sort of perversion of traditional values and relationships. Write a paragraph about each of these items, how they came into Ballard's possession, and what they mean thematically:

Part 1) The rifle

Part 2) The stuffed animals

Part 3) The women's clothes

(see the answer keys)

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