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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 drags Sammy from his car on lover's lane?

2. What does Mary Anne tell Ben after dinner the night of the prom?

3. What does Ben think of Sammy's plan to blackmail Junior Palmer?

4. What does Sister Loretta say a human body is?

5. To what does Ben invite Mary Anne to attend with him?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mary Anne confess to Ben during the prom?

2. Why is Arrabelle frightened for Toomer in the aftermath of the rape?

3. Bull dies a hero. How does this affect the family dynamics?

4. Who is Junior Palmer?

5. What is the significance of the story Mary Anne tells on Christmas Eve as the family waits for Bull to get ready for church?

6. What does Sammy see at lover's point? What does he hope to do with the information?

7. How is Mr. Loring different from the teachers Ben is used to? How does Ben feel about Mr. Loring?

8. Who instructs the male students on sex during catechism? Why?

9. How does being Jewish affect Sammy?

10. Sammy's date is brutally raped after he is forced out of his car. What impact will this episode have on Sammy and the people of Ravenel?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why does Bull begin going to Hobie's Grill? What is significant about Bull's behavior in public compared to his behavior at home? Why is Bull different in public? What does this say about the behaviors of an abuser? How does this behavior make seeking help more difficult for the abuser's family? Is this behavior stereotypical? What other stereotypes exist in this book? List as many as you can.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss setting. What is the setting of this novel? How does setting influence the plot of the novel? How does setting influence the characters? How would a different setting affect the characters of this novel? Would a different setting make a difference to any key characters? Which characters would be affected? Which characters would not be affected?

Essay Topic 3

Who does Mary Anne most resemble, Lillian or Bull? Give some examples of this. Why does Mary Anne continuously attempted to goad her father? What does Mary Anne want from Bull? Why does Mary Anne talk about the future with such despair? Does Mary Anne really believe she will end up like her mother? Why? Is this why Mary Anne speaks of suicide?

(see the answer keys)

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