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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 does Dude Botley view Buddy's mixture of hymns and blue?

2. Who is Nora's primary target when attacking Buddy and Pickett?

3. How does Buddy take care of his hands?

4. How does Dude Botley describe Buddy?

5. How many scars does Pickett have on his face?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did the fight between Buddy and Pickett start?

2. Can Buddy trust people?

3. In Chapter 2, how does Buddy act crazy?

4. Is Dude Botley superstitious about hymns? How?

5. How does Buddy feel about coming back home?

6. How do Jaelin and Buddy approach Buddy's affair with Robin similarly?

7. At the end of Chapter 2, is a new crisis inevitable? Why?

8. Is Bellocq unstable?

9. What is the image of scrambling over barbed wire meant to portray?

10. What happens to Buddy's view of the women in his life at the end of Chapter 2? Why does this happen?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

"Coming Through Slaughter" is an account of Buddy's slow decent into madness. Discuss Buddy's madness and why he became mad. What is his madness meant to say?

Essay Topic 2

The setting for Buddy's life in New Orleans is surrounded by dilapidation and depravity, although he doesn't necessarily see it this way. Discuss Buddy's evolving perception of his surroundings and what the setting adds to or reflects in the narrative.

Essay Topic 3

"Coming Through Slaughter" is a work if fiction, but relies on historical figures. Discuss how Ondaatje uses history in his fiction. What is his intention? What does it add to the narrative? To what end is this tool?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 670 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample