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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. At the end of Chapter 40, Paul Berlin reasons that the root goal or the Vietnam War is to spread what?

2. What is Cacciato doing while the other men vote to murder Sidney Martin?

3. What cause of death does Doc Peret give for Billy Boy Watkins?

4. What clothing accessory does Paul Berlin recall vividly about a young,crying Vietnamese girl in Chapter 39?

5. What time is it in Chapter 32?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. Why does Cacciato require convincing regarding the Martin murder?

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

5. What implied ultimatum does Sarkin Aung Wan make to Paul Berlin in Chapter 43?

6. Describe Captain Rhallon.

7. How does Doc Peret get Third Squad out of trouble with Iranian authorities in Chapter 29?

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

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

10. Why does Stink Harris jump off the ship at the end of Chapter 38?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout Going After Cacciato, both the author and the characters in the novel debate the reasons for American involvement in Vietnam. Write an essay about American interventionism, focusing on three instances in the narrative:

Part 1) In Tehran, Third Squad sits down for a drink with Captain Rhallon of the Iranian Savak. Why does he think America is having such a difficult time in Vietnam? How does Doc Peret respond to Rhallon's theory?

Part 2) Write a paragraph about Paul Berlin's promotion review for Spec Four. What reason does the unnamed major give for America's involvement in Vietnam? How does Paul Berlin respond to this?

Part 3) What hypothetical conversation does Paul Berlin hold with the young crying girl in a village Third Squad burned? What does he want to tell her about his reasons for coming to fight in her homeland?

Essay Topic 2

The action of Going After Cacciato is characterized by long stretches of quiet and peace punctuated by by moments of sudden frenzy and violent panic. Write an essay about the dynamic between quiet and panic, in three parts:

Part 1) Why does Third Squad stop dead in its tracks when it arrives in Delhi? How is Lieutenant Corson affected by the peace of the region, and how do the other men respond? What finally breaks the quiet?

Part 2) How does Paul Berlin settle into Paris life more completely than the rest of the Squad? How does he nearly forget about the War entirely? What finally breaks the quiet?

Part 3) Write a paragraph about the silent village the Squad happens upon? How does the quiet drive the men of Third Squad to the breaking point? What finally breaks the quiet?

Essay Topic 3

In the longer narrative of Going After Cacciato, Paul Berlin invents a number of figures that do not exist.

Write an essay about three of these figures. What function do they serve in the story? Do they stem from any real experience that Paul Berlin has? What do they say about the political or spiritual realities of the Vietnam War?

Part 1) Jolly Chand

Part 2) Captain Rhallon

Part 3) Sarkin Aung Wan

(see the answer keys)

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