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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. What did Hayden do instead of drinking in Chapter 9?

2. How long does Augusten drink before going to Pighead's wake?

3. What absent person does Augusten say hello to at the very end of the novel?

4. What is Augusten's reaction to smoking crack in Chapter 13?

5. In Chapter 9, Augusten realizes he bought what when he was drunk?

Short Essay Questions

1. To whom does Augusten confide about Foster in Chapter 9?

2. In what state is Augusten on the day of Pighead's wake in Chapter 13?

3. What sort of harassment is Augusten facing at work?

4. What does Augusten realize about Foster in Chapter 7?

5. How does Augusten's story end?

6. What positive events happen to Augusten in Chapter 9?

7. What is the fallout from Augusten's revelation about Foster at the end of Chapter 8?

8. Why is dinner with the Nazi in Chapter 10 nearly unbearable for Augusten?

9. What news does Hayden give Augusten in Chapter 12?

10. What surprise does Pighead have for Augusten in Chapter 14?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay on the topic of alienation from self in Dry. How has alcoholism rendered Augusten Burroughs unable to process his own emotional sphere? What steps does he take toward translating his feelings into self-awareness after rehab? Discuss how events involving work, Pighead, and Foster confound him, in part, because of his lack of self-awareness.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay about the character of Foster and his role in the novel. Describe Foster, his life, and how he appears when he first enters Augusten's orbit. Is there ever a point at which Foster is in control of his addiction? How does he become as addicting to the protagonist as any chemical? What is Foster's contribution to Augusten's final collapse into relapse?

Essay Topic 3

Augusten struggle with alcoholism is also a window into the advertising world. The scenes that take place in his place of business illustrate the challenges anyone faces in the industry. Write a three-part essay about advertising in Dry:

Part 1) How does Augusten's drinking prove a problem in his and Greer's attempt to woo the Faberge clients? What duties does he shirk because of his constant intoxication? What eventually happens with the potential Faberge account?

Part 2) Discuss the Wirksam Beer account. What do the clients want from Greer and Augusten, and how does this request prove particularly difficult to complete? Describe the eventual ad campaign. How does Burroughs characterize the quality of this concept and execution?

Part 3) When Augusten returns to his advertising firm, he discovers someone is leaving threatening and incriminating items in his office. Discuss the nature of this harassment and Augusten's theories regarding it. What does this do to Augusten's sense of control and safety? What does it reveal about the industry in which he works?

(see the answer keys)

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