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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 Ballard look at wanted posters?

2. Why can the boy in the car not find his wallet when Fate asks for it?

3. Which of the following is listed as Lester Ballard's lineage?

4. What type of bird does Ballard chase down while walking to a friend's house?

5. Where does Ballard figure John goes after leaving jail?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the baby of Ballard's friend, Ralph.

2. How is Lester Ballard's neck injured?

3. What do the Dumpkeeper and Ballard do on their days together?

4. How did Ballard get his rifle?

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

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

7. What does Ballard do on his way to visit his friend?

8. Explain how the boy that came through town could always shoot birds in the air.

9. What statement does the Sheriff make to Ballard after he is released?

10. Why is Lester Ballard ejected from his first game at the carnival?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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 2

As Ballard recedes deeper into madness, he also recedes farther from society. Write an essay on the topic of his descent into an animalistic state:

Part 1) How does Ballard transition from the land he sees auctioned to the dwelling he inhabits in the first book of the novel. What changes does he undergo during this time?

Part 2) After the shack burns down, where does Ballard go? Detail the nature of his existence in his new home. What does he have and how does he have things arranged? How does he pass his days?

Part 3) Describe Ballard's final descent into a subhuman state, digging his way in pitch blackness in a cave tunnel. In what state are his body and his mind at this point?

Essay Topic 3

In what way does Lester Ballard's interactions with the Sleeping Woman on Frog Mountain codify his attitude toward women and his desire to have them in a lifeless state. In the essay, compare and contrast his interaction with her to his interaction with Ralph's daughter. Also compare his defense to the police with her to his defense to the posse at the end of the novel. Pay attention to the terms he uses to describe her.

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