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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 David choose in Chapter Three?

2. What happened to the person who helped David in the camp while he was growing up?

3. Why does the woman not want her husband to give David money?

4. What does David struggle not to do as he lies awake?

5. What story does David concoct to explain his travels?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain David's reaction to the baby.

2. Why was crossing the road, a dangerous task, a type of turning point for David?

3. Describe how David is able to keep going long after he has stopped caring.

4. Explain why David knows so many languages, and how this might be able to help him.

5. Explain why David doesn't believe he would be good at playing.

6. Explain why David knows so little of himself, including where he is from, and what he looks like.

7. Why do the people in town eventually wish to catch David?

8. Describe how David comes to own a mirror, and his reaction to his own reflection.

9. Why was it so important for David to clean himself so thoroughly?

10. Describe David's first meal with the family.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

David's relationship with God grows through the novel from being non-existent to being one of the most vital relationships in his life. Describe each stage of this relationship in detail. How does David find God? How does he choose a God? How does he pray? How does he learn about God? What promises does he make to God, and what triumphs does he attribute to God? Does God succeed, to David, in helping him?

Essay Topic 2

There are many references in the novel to the power of "them", without actual description of who "they" really are. Choose three instances where the author gives information about "them", and explain the reference in detail. What is said about "them"? What does the reference indicate about who "they" might be? How does the author use these vague descriptions to impose a feeling of unfocused dread?

Essay Topic 3

In the novel, "the man" comes to symbolize all things evil and cruel in the world. By the end of the novel, however, it is revealed that "the man" is likely the reason David is alive. Analyze this character in depth. Who is he? How did he treat David? Why did he treat him as he did? What is revealed about him toward the end of the novel? How did he actually help David? Why did he help David? What does this say about David's concept of what is bad?

(see the answer keys)

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