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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 does Third Squad give to Stink Harris as a joke in Chapter 39?

2. What action does each man in Third Squad perform to signify his agreement in killing Sidney Martin?

3. In Chapter 36, what does Cacciato slip through the prison window to Paul Berlin?

4. What type of tree is Paul Berlin surprised to notice in Chapter 41?

5. Who nurses Lieutenant Corson back to health in Chapter 38?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Sarkin Aung Wan and Paul Berlin's debate in Chapter 44.

2. What does Buff's body look like when Cacciato finds it in Chapter 41?

3. How does Lieutenant Martin precipitate his own murder in Chapter 34?

4. Describe the girl from California in Chapter 40.

5. What public event does Third Squad witness in Chapter 29?

6. What shift in power does Lieutenant Corson acknowledge as he speaks to Paul Berlin in Chapter 43?

7. Why does Third Squad intensify its search for Cacciato in Chapter 44?

8. What does Paul Berlin rationalize is the essential purpose of the Vietnam War at the end of Chapter 40?

9. In Chapter 31, what haunting event happens to Paul Berlin on his first day in the mountains?

10. Describe Captain Rhallon.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay charting the progression of Oscar Johnson. How does he begin as a sympathetic figure - a man who cares for the safety of Third Squad - and slowly become a major antagonist to Paul Berlin? What does Oscar care for primarily? How are his grievances against the cavalier Sidney Martin similar to his grievances against the incompetent and deluded Paul Berlin?

Essay Topic 2

Midway through Going After Cacciato, Paul Berlin states that a fellow soldier's death can only be classified as a fact. Write an essay on the topic of death in the novel. Is there such a thing as a good death or a bad death in O'Brien's universe or is all death equally meaningless? Is there any difference in the way the author presents Bernie Lynn's death and the execution in Tehran? Is there any intimation from Berlin that there may be something after death?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about the character of Sarkin Aung Wan. How does she first appear to the reader in the narrative, and what are her origins as a fictitious creation? Why does Paul Berlin feel the need to add her to his war story? What purpose does she serve in his life? Analyze their final debate determine her function in Paul Berlin's delusion.

(see the answer keys)

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