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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. Who is the composer who sets Vonnegut's Latin translation to music?

2. Why is Algren bitter over his masterpiece, The Man with the Golden Arm?

3. The author pictures his father as what fictional character waiting for a prince to awaken his career?

4. How are Vonnegut and Elie Wiesel the same?

5. What causes the author's mother's untreated insanity?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Vonnegut say when his book is burned?

2. How are the Reverend and the Attorney General's Commission on Pornography different?

3. How does Jill embody the Women's Liberation Movement? How does this attitude toward life make her a better person?

4. What is Vonnegut's opinion of liberty?

5. How can you tell Vonnegut does not value medals and awards?

6. Although Jill Krementz attends private schools and vacations with the rich as a child, how does she support herself as an adult?

7. What is Vonnegut's opinion of the First Amendment?

8. The 20th century is the first to get reliable information about the human condition. Why does Vonnegut believe that this could be a bad thing?

9. How has Hemingway grown dated?

10. What is the Reverend's opinion on banning objectionable books?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Vonnegut claims the U.S.'s most nurturing contribution to planetary culture is Alcoholics Anonymous.

Part 1) Why does he believe this?

Part 2) Do you agree with him? Why or why not?

Part 3) What else has the U.S. contributed to better the planet?

Essay Topic 2

The Attorney General's Commission on Pornography is created to protect the public from immoral literature.

Part 1) Does the United States have the right to decide what is moral or immoral? Why or why not?

Part 2) Give examples from the text that reveal the beliefs of this Commission.

Part 3) Do all the members of the Commission "practice what they preach?"

Essay Topic 3

Dresden was firebombed in retaliation for previous attacks on the British during World War II.

Part 1) Was Dresden a good choice for the military to bomb? Why or why not?

Part 2) How would you feel if you had been a POW in Dresden during the firebombing?

Part 3) Are there any cities in the world that have been bombed but you feel shouldn't have been?

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