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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 American holiday is approaching at the same time as the Vietnamese New Year?

2. What does Richie tell Kenny in the letter he writes about the Vietcong soldier?

3. What do the American soldiers remove from the dead soldiers to keep the enemy from identifying them?

4. After Richie's discussion with Johnson about the war protestors, what does he fall asleep thinking about?

5. How many of the three soldiers--Peewee, Richie, and the captive--are able to escape the Vietnamese troops?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does it come to be that Richie is shot?

2. What happens when the Vietnamese allies want the American troops to help them capture a crucial hill?

3. How do the American soldiers prepare the bodies of their fallen soldiers so that the enemy cannot mutilate them?

4. Where do Richie and Peewee spend the night when they are separated from their squad, and how do they find their way there?

5. What conversation does Richie get into with Johnson about the war protesters?

6. How does Richie explain the shooting of the Vietcong soldier to his brother, Kenny?

7. What letter does Gearhart give to Richie and Walowick to hold onto?

8. What race relation issues come to light during the time of Vietnamese Tet?

9. What happens during the Lieutenant Gearhart's first reconnaissance mission in Vietnam?

10. What does Richie do with his Purple Heart?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout this novel, the theme of innocence is presented through the soldiers' naivety. Briefly describe one scene that highlights the innocence of one or more of the soldiers. Then describe the way that the novel functions as a testament to the loss of youth through war.

Essay Topic 2

The title of the novel is a very powerful one. Briefly describe the scene in which the title of the novel was first mentioned, and then explain how the title acts as a symbol for the soldiers fighting in the Vietnam war.

Essay Topic 3

In many of his missions throughout Vietnam, Richie wonders whether the American troops are there to help the Vietnamese villages or there to harm them. Choose two instances in the novel in which the moral ambiguity of the situation was highlighted. Then, explain how those instances led to Richie's uncertainty over the war in general.

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