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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What did Vaughan rehearse for in the days before his death?
(a) His own death.
(b) Ballard's murder.
(c) His wedding.
(d) A one-man show.

2. What is Helen wearing when Ballard sees her in the yard at Northolt station?
(a) A red dress.
(b) A white raincoat.
(c) A green jacket.
(d) A black suit.

3. As Ballard waits for someone to reassure him after the crash, what does he imagine firemen doing with carbon dioxide sprays?
(a) Tracing obscene or humorous slogans.
(b) Coiling dead bodies on the ground.
(c) Spraying the spectators to punish them.
(d) Enacting a grotesque simulation of violence.

4. What kind of car does Catherine drive?
(a) A truck.
(b) A sports car.
(c) A large sedan.
(d) A minivan.

5. Who does Ballard first take in a rental car to the scene of his accident that killed Helen's husband?
(a) Catherine.
(b) No one.
(c) Helen.
(d) Renata.

6. What premonitions does Ballard begin to have after being released from the hospital?
(a) The salvation of sinners everywhere.
(b) The second coming of Jesus.
(c) The return to a pre-industrial age.
(d) The end of the world by automobile.

7. What is the person parked behind Ballard at the scene of the accident that killed Helen's husband doing?
(a) Writing on a pad.
(b) Taking pictures of him.
(c) Talking on the phone.
(d) Flashing his headlights.

8. Where is the film studio Ballard works for located?
(a) Shepperton.
(b) Salisbury.
(c) Swindon.
(d) Somerset.

9. How many cars did Ballard miss before hitting the one that kills a man?
(a) None.
(b) Two.
(c) Three.
(d) One.

10. According to Ballard, what happens on the fourth day in the hospital "for no evident reason"?
(a) The IV fluids are taken.
(b) The doctors don't come.
(c) The anesthetics are withdrawn.
(d) The nurses harrass him.

11. When Ballard tells Catherine that she should have gone to the funeral for Helen's husband, how does she respond?
(a) She tells him she wished she had, but that she wasn't ready.
(b) She tells him he shouldn't expect her to do what he wants.
(c) She tells him she's glad she didn't because she felt too guilty.
(d) She tells him she couldn't go because he killed him.

12. Why did Ballard have his safety belt on when leaving his secretary, Renata, before the crash?
(a) To prevent being injured should he get into a car crash.
(b) To prevent him from the temptation of crashing into another car.
(c) To avoid her the embarrassment of having to embrace him.
(d) To avoid getting a ticket from the police.

13. According to Ballard, what would Ballard and Vaughan listen to on their way to accident sites?
(a) BBC news.
(b) Nothing.
(c) Police broadcasts.
(d) Music.

14. According to Ballard, Vaughan's relations with women were all governed by what?
(a) "Obsessive games."
(b) "Repressed desires."
(c) "Sexist ideas."
(d) "Violent fantasies."

15. On their driving excursions to look for accident sites, what does Vaughan describe to Ballard?
(a) "Countless love affairs."
(b) "Countless regrets and disappointments."
(c) "Countless dreams of redemption."
(d) "Countless imaginary disasters."

Short Answer Questions

1. The walls of Vaughan's apartment are covered with close-ups of whose body?

2. What verdict is given at the coroner's inquest of Ballard's crash with Helen and her husband?

3. According to Ballard, "For Vaughan, the car-crash and his own ______ had made their final marriage."

4. According to Ballard, why did Vaughan's former career come to an abrupt end?

5. Who does Ballard take to the stock-car races in the stadium at Northolt?

(see the answer keys)

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