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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. What action takes place the moment that Tom Benecke regains his momentum toward the building wall?

2. What happens when Tom Benecke strikes the glass with the "heel of his hand" (48)?

3. When Tom Benecke imagines Clare Benecke returning home to find him outside, he describes her face using what two adjectives?

4. What is NOT a physical ailment Tom Benecke is experiencing by the time he considers the length of time before Clare Benecke's arrival?

5. What does Tom Benecke admit to hearing and ignoring in the past?

Short Essay Questions

1. For what reason will Clare Benecke be unable to help Tom Benecke herself when she arrives home?

2. How is the motif of the carnivalesque apparent within Tom Benecke's image of what he will do when he regains access to his apartment?

3. What is Finney's purpose for including the detail that Clare Benecke cannot open the window?

4. What element of the movement inside Tom Benecke's apartment shocks him?

5. For what reasons does Tom Benecke finally decide that he cannot possibly wait on the ledge until Clare Benecke returns home?

6. What is the significance of Tom Benecke's act of spitting out the object that is in his mouth?

7. What else happens when Tom Benecke's wrists are "jarred" (41) from the frame of the window?

8. Imagining what scene causes Tom Benecke to lose his feelings of calm as he looks through his apartment window?

9. When Tom Benecke detects movement inside his apartment, what is the source?

10. In what manner does Tom Benecke find the yellow sheet of paper?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Research the 1950s in relation to the business world and create a claim linking the historical context of the story "Contents of the Dead Man's Pocket" with one of its main messages.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze Jack Finney's story "Contents of the Dead Man's Pocket" from an Existential perspective. What elements of life does it suggest hold the most meaning and why?

Essay Topic 3

Write a critical essay about "Contents of the Dead Man's Pocket" while using the critical power theory lens of feminist theory. Use textual evidence to back up your strong, specific claim regarding the story's treatment of gender roles, the objectification of women, female empowerment, or any other issues related to feminist theory that can be found in the story.

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