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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. Where does Siegfried von Kleist tell Selena her father went in Chapter 31?

2. Who was Mrs. Onassis's first husband?

3. What is the international word for a ship in distress?

4. Who is the only non-Kanka-bono who can converse with the Kanka-bonos?

5. According to the narrator, how do people comfort those who are sick?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does James Wait tell Mary Hepburn to call him by his first name? By what name does Mary call James?

2. Why are the Kanka-bono girls laughing at the Captain in Chapter 11? Why does the Captain think they are laughing?

3. According to the narrator, are there anymore left handed people in the world? Explain.

4. What is the irony behind the marriage of Mary Kaplan and Willard Flemming in Book 2: Chapter 4?

5. Why is the Bahia considered to be a ghost ship in the opinion of humankind?

6. How is the Bahia married to the South American mainland?

7. In the Captain's story he shares with Akiko, how are lobsters much like humans?

8. What does the narrator say after the death of Kazakh and James Wait? Why does he say this?

9. Is Siegfried von Kleist successful at committing suicide in Chapter 38? Explain.

10. Who does Akiko name one of her daughters after? Explain.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The New York Times Book Review claims that "Vonnegut is a postmodern Mark Twain." Do you agree with this statement? Explain.

Essay Topic 2

How are the blue-footed boobies in the novel symbolic? Why do you think the author puts such an emphasis on the blue-footed boobies? Explain.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss sensuality, sexuality, and fertility as it pertains to the novel. Be sure to give at least one example of each from the novel.

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