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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. Which soldier's girlfriend sends him a letter proposing marriage?

2. When Richie thinks about going AWOL, what country does he plan to run to?

3. In the attempt to escape the Vietnamese troops, where is Richie shot?

4. What offer does Gearhart give the soldiers to keep them safe?

5. What do the American soldiers do to the bodies of their dead soldiers to prevent the enemy from mutilating them?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens when the allies bring in a Vietnamese mother and her two small children found wandering around the rice paddies?

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

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

4. How are Richie and Peewee separated from the rest of their troop?

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

6. What does Richie do with his Purple Heart?

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

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

9. How does Richie kill his first Vietcong soldier, and what is his reaction to the killing?

10. What power struggle arises between Johnson and Stewart in the battlefield of the reclaimed hill?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

All of the soldiers in Richie's squad have joined the army for very different reasons. Choose three soldiers from Richie's squad and briefly describe their reasons for joining the army. Then, explain how those motivations affected the soldier's performance in battle.

Essay Topic 2

Even though race was a major issue with many of the soldiers in Richie's squad, the frost between the races began to thaw as the novel progressed.

Part 1) Explain the division of race that was present when Richie first entered his squad.

Part 2) Describe the ways that the tension between the races began to dissipate as the novel progressed.

Part 3) Explain why race cannot be a factor when a military squad is in battle.

Essay Topic 3

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.

(see the answer keys)

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