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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 does Zack break in the cafeteria?

2. Why is Max not allowed in the rectory?

3. What recent injury does Miles have?

4. What does Miles forget when he leaves Martha's Vineyard?

5. What does Principal Meyer tell Miles about Tick?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Miles' good heart exhibited in the scene with a hungover Buster?

2. What does Father Mark represent in the story?

3. Explain why Janine is obsessed with the number sixty as she sits at the football game.

4. Why does David keep pressuring Miles about a liquor license?

5. What is the setting for the story?

6. How do you know that Janine is having second thoughts about marrying Walt?

7. Name the three events of Part 3, Chapter 15 which foreshadow coming events for the plot.

8. Explain the irony in Miles' not having driven a car before taking driver's education.

9. What is the Exacto knife and why does it signify foreshadowing for the plot?

10. Describe how Zack Minty exhibits unsportsmanlike behavior and then manipulates the crowd at the football game.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

During the Martha's Vineyard trip, Charlie, Grace and Miles all get poison ivy. Explain what the poison ivy is a metaphor for in this chapter. Why is it different for each of the three characters?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the setting of Empire Falls. What is the significance of the river?

Essay Topic 3

Why does Miles have a love-hate relationship with Max? Does Miles blame Max for his mother's indiscretions? Does Max hold any silent hostility toward Miles? Explain.

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