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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. With whom does Inez Victor abruptly leave Honolulu in 1975?

2. How does Harry Victor describe Inez Victor's unhappiness in Chapter 9?

3. Who are the real "wildcards" in Jack Lovett's estimation (37)?

4. What comic book character do soldiers name the nuclear device that Lovett recalls being detonated?

5. Who is the annoying and loud Kiki of Chapter 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Carol Christian.

2. What is Joan Didion's first memory of Jack Lovett and Inez Victor together?

3. How does the narrator of Democracy reveal herself in Chapter 2?

4. Describe the nature of Jack Lovett's death.

5. What cable is sent to Inez Victor on October 2, 1975?

6. Why does Harry Victor defend Adlai's returning to school?

7. Why is the helicopter engineer returning to Vietnam?

8. What off-message statement does Inez make to an Associated Press reporter in Chapter 7?

9. What is the world political situation as Inez Victor and Jack Lovett talk in Chapter 1?

10. What are Jessie Victor's new plans for her career?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Joan Didion 's style of writing is perhaps most often described as cold, objective, and bloodless. It reflects her background as a journalist. Write an essay in three parts, examining how her narrative style affects the way she presents the shattering events of Democracy. How does she deny her characters a clear emotional life? How does this affect the way these violent and passionate events occur? How does it affect the reader's reaction to them?

Part 1) Jessie Victor's drug addiction.

Part 2) Paul Christian's shootings.

Part 3) Inez Victor's affair and her decision to leave her family.

Essay Topic 2

The narrative of DEMOCRACY is largely centered around a few brief, shattering actions. Write an essay about three such actions in the story. From what do they derive, and what does their occurrence indicate about the characters of the novel? What unexpected consequences result from them? How, in the end, are they all connected?

Part 1) The Paul Christian shootings.

Part 2) Jessie Victor's stow-away trip to Saigon.

Part 3) The fall of Saigon.

Essay Topic 3

Jessie Victor is one of the more unpredictable characters of DEMOCRACY. Write an essay analyzing her objectives, both those that she tells her father she wants to pursue and the ones she pursues by a series of inadvisable actions. What decisions does she make that cause problems both for her and for those around her? What reasoning does she give for making these choices, and what reasoning does the narrator infer? How doe these motivations connect with the goals she describes to her father?

(see the answer keys)

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