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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. Why would Vaughan arrange women in stylized positions in cars?

2. What does Helen do when Ballard first addresses her in the hospital?

3. What kind of airline pilot removes the young wife from the crash with Ballard?

4. How many cars did Ballard miss before hitting the one that kills a man?

5. As Ballard is taken to the hospital after his crash, he recalls that "Vaughan collected the _____of ________nurses in his photographic albums."

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Helen Remington doing at the impound yard when Ballard returns to survey the damage to his car and what does it show about her character?

2. What kind of car does Ballard buy after his accident and what does it signify?

3. Why doesn't Catherine attend the funeral for Dr. Helen Remington's husband and what does it show about her character?

4. Who is with Dr. Helen Remington in the hospital and why is it significant?

5. How is the man killed in the crash with Ballard symbolic?

6. In the hospital, what does Ballard begin to do once he's mobile and how is it significant?

7. Describe Ballard and Catherine's marriage and explain its relevance to the novel.

8. How does Dr. Robert Vaughan interrupt Ballard's rendezvous with the prostitute and why is it important?

9. Why does Ballard wear a seat belt when he crashes his car and how is it significant?

10. How does Ballard regard his accident and why is it significant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Traffic is a leitmotif in "Crash." What is the meaning of traffic, the material traffic of cars on the highways, as well as the emotional traffic of the characters lives?

Essay Topic 2

How does J.G. Ballard use language in the novel? How would you characterize the tone and style of the language? Support your statements with examples from the book.

Essay Topic 3

How did readers respond to "Crash" when it was first published? Discuss the critical response of the novel, including reviews, interviews with Ballard, and other readers' response to the novel. How was the novel both vilified or censored as well as hailed by the reading public?

(see the answer keys)

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