View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who give Vaughan a set of passkeys so that he could take cars from the airport parking lots?

2. What other famous personalities does Vaughan NOT obsess over?

3. Where are Ballard, Catherine, and Vaughan when Catherine and Vaughan have sex in the backseat?

4. Who does Ballard see on his balcony when he is caught in a traffic jam?

5. According to Ballard, Vaughan's fixation on the sex-death fantasy he created became more frustrated in his last days with him for what reason?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do Ballard and Vaughan do after they pick up two prostitutes and why is it relevant to the larger story?

2. Who are the spectators at the accident site involving the taxi and limo and what role does the scene have in the larger story?

3. At Seagrave's, what does Ballard deduce about Vaughan's photographs of Elizabeth Taylor and provides insight into why Vaughan followed Ballard?

4. Where do Catherine and Vaughan have sex and why is it significant?

5. What kinds of photos are in the album Vaughan shows Ballard at Seagrave's house and what does Ballard notice about them?

6. Why doesn't Ballard intervene on Elizabeth Taylor's behalf when he knew what Vaughan was capable of attempting to hurt her?

7. How does Vaughan begin to change as the novel progresses?

8. When Ballard and Vaughan arrive at the accident site involving a minor accident, what do they discover?

9. What type of questions from Vaughan's questionnaire is Ballard specifically drawn to?

10. What is Elizabeth Taylor shooting at the studio where Ballard works and how is it significant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ballard details the urban landscape throughout the novel, from the car impound to the airport flyover, the abandoned lot to the parking garage. Choose 2 urban landscapes and discuss their purpose in the novel. What do they represent for the characters? How do the characters respond to these landscapes?

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

In the novel, obsession controls, empowers, and destroys characters in their fixation with particular people, objects, and ideas. Choose 3 characters and discuss their obsessions. In particular, what or who are they obsessed with and why? How does their obsession change them? Give examples throughout the course of the novel to support your statements.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 832 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample