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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. Where do the American soldiers get marijuana?

2. There are eight thousand American troops facing how many NVA troops?

3. Some soldiers feel they must stop the war or Communism will go where?

4. Who is defeated during the battle of Dien Bien Phu?

5. When did Dien Bien Phu occur?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Herr feel emptiness and longing while visiting old friends?

2. Describe the actions of the correspondents while in the field.

3. What timeframe is Herr writing during? Is there any significance to the fact that he is writing at this time?

4. What do the soldiers expect to find at Hue? What are they greeted with? How does the battle turn out?

5. Describe the stories Herr hears from the soldiers.

6. Describe Herr's drug use and why the soldiers try to avoid their dreams.

7. Describe the increasing intensity of the war and what the NVA are planning.

8. Describe China Beach and what soldiers do there.

9. Khe Sanh is compared to another battle fought nearly ten years earlier. What is the name of that battle and what happened?

10. Describe the mortar attack in which Herr is injured, his understanding of the situation, and the possible truth about the soldier's laughter.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the attitude of the Marines compliment the denial of reality by government officials? How do both of these attitudes affect the morale of troops?

Essay Topic 2

What type of relationship do the soldiers and correspondents maintain? Is it symbiotic? Are there moments of tension? Are they respectful?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how exhaustion and frustration with the war affect the soldiers. What do the soldiers do that costs some of them their lives? What has their time in country done to their belief in the war and in the odds of survival?

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