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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 go the morning after his shack burns?

2. How does the Sheriff travel around the town in Chapter 45 (pp. 160-168)?

3. Into what other county does Ballard cross at the beginning of this section?

4. Who comes to Ballard's shack the day after he finds the dead girl?

5. What animals mill about the stream that passes through Ballard's cave?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Ballard subsist as the harsh winter descends?

2. What happens to Ballard when he tries to cross the creek?

3. Where does Ballard settle at the end of Chapter 30 (pp. 106-108)?

4. What imaginary conversations does Ballard have in the woods?

5. What point does Mr. Fox make to Ballard about his debt to the grocery?

6. In what state is the town in this section?

7. What does Ballard do at his old property, now Greer's?

8. How does Ballard react to Ralph's daughter's rejection of his advances?

9. Describe Ballard's second interview by the police.

10. How does Ballard's situation change in this section?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Child of God is essentially a chronicle of Lester Ballard's descent into unbridled madness, stemming from his need for human contact. Write about the stages of his degeneration and what they say about him as person:

Part 1) Ballard's run-in with the Sleeping Woman on Frog Mountain is his first instance of violence against a woman. What transpires between Ballard and the woman? How does this reflect an essential desire within him?

Part 2) How do Ballard's numerous returns to the idling car with the dead couple illustrate a decision on his part? What does he decide? What has he realized about himself?

Part 3) Examine Ballard's interchange with Ralph's daughter, culminating in his murdering her. How does this episode illustrate his discomfort with human interaction and the breaking down of inhibitions to his violent sexual appetites?

Essay Topic 2

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.

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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