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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 is Harry being sent in Part III, Chapter one, which is a small area but he will learn a lot?

2. Who is Harry forced to take to a party he is attending with the Soviets, a woman he describes as a spinster?

3. What do the Russians find after Harry leaves Berlin in Part III, Chapter one?

4. What embarrassing moment does Harry recall about his father and his new wife in Part I, Chapter 1?

5. What did Harry's father want Hugh to be for Harry?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do all the different names represented by cryptograms reinforce the concept of Alpha and Omega?

2. What does Harvey keep doing with Harry's cryptogram?

3. How is the growing difference between who Harry is as a CIA agent and whom he feels like enumerated in Part II, Chapters 1 - 4?

4. What happens when Dix and Harry go out for a drink with Freddie McCann and his wife Bunny?

5. In Omega I through Omega VII, Harry spends a lot of time discussing his childhood and background. How are these connections important to him?

6. How is Kittredge's sixth sense emphasized when Harry sends her a brooch?

7. What experience does Harry share that has to do with God and lust?

8. What does Harry learn about Kittredge's father that is disturbing?

9. Why is Harry's development as a man and CIA agent still incomplete?

10. What does Harry's mistress, Chloe, call to tell him after Kittredge locks herself in her bedroom?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In "Harlot's Ghost", one of the writing styles that the Norman Mailer uses is his choice of narrator. Mailer uses a first-person narrative to tell the story. Explore the different styles of narrators for fiction writing, particularly first-person narratives as in Harlot's Ghost. How does knowing Harry's thoughts and feelings help the story along? How would the overall story be affected by a change in narrator?

Essay Topic 2

Dix Butler and Harry begin working together and share an apartment in Berlin. Compare the characters of Dix Butler and Harry, analyzing how Dix affects Harry. What kind of person is Dix? How is Dix's attitude about life different than Harry's? How do they feel about each other?

Essay Topic 3

In the process of creating a story, the author's choices in style meld to become the writer's voice, his or her own unique style. Examine Mailer's use of style in "Harlot's Ghost" and how it affects the overall story. What choices does Mailer use in his writing that shows his unique style? Does Mailer use tactical choices in grammar or word usage? How can sentence and paragraph length affect the overall story? What kind of imagery does Mailer use?

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