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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The woman mentioned in #68 is described as __________________.
(a) slatternly.
(b) prim.
(c) virginal.
(d) matronly.

2. What is Gene's last name?
(a) Pasternak.
(b) Pearson.
(c) Paulson.
(d) Preston.

3. Why do Christine and Gene fight at the party?
(a) He is flirting with other girls.
(b) He wants to go home early.
(c) He did not remember her birthday.
(d) He is smoking marijuana.

4. What is David's last name?
(a) Stofsky.
(b) Smallwood.
(c) Sorenson.
(d) Smedinghoff.

5. How had Stofsky's father reacted when Stofsky told him he was a homosexual?
(a) He was accepting.
(b) He was sad.
(c) He was enraged.
(d) He had no reaction.

Short Answer Questions

1. Kathryn is _________________ older than Paul.

2. Stofsky reads some of his poetry which was inspired by _________________________.

3. To whose apartment does Paul go to later that night?

4. Why does Kathryn not want to go to David's party?

5. When Paul cannot concentrate on his book, he goes out because he is ______________.

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the significance of Paul Hobbes writing a love letter at the beginning of the novel?

2. How are psychotherapy and writing compared and which seems to help the characters in the book?

3. What does Paul's letter to someone named Liza signify for the plot?

4. How does the author show that Kathryn is more mature than Paul?

5. What does the aimless behavior of the characters signify in the book?

6. Describe the scene where Stofsky goes to see Waters in his flat and is picked up by the asylum attendants.

7. How does the budding romance between Pasternak and Christine begin to mirror that of Paul and Kathryn's marriage?

8. What is an example of how the post-war search for meaning is taking on toll on people?

9. How does Pasternak show his immaturity regarding Georgia and his still living with his parents?

10. How does the frantic behavior of the characters undermine their relationships with each other?

(see the answer keys)

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