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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 is the unnamed narrator of the story?

2. Who is Ad Francis?

3. What does Bill's father say makes drunkards?

4. What is Nick's father's profession?

5. Who is Marjorie?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the narrator's tone in the Memoir for Chapter 4.

2. Explain the significance of Marjorie saying, "There's our old ruin, Nick."

3. Even though Nick initiated the break up with Marjorie, he is still overcome with emotion. How does Hemingway indicate this to the reader?

4. What are the reasons that Krebs has a difficult time adjusting to civilian life after leaving his military life?

5. What parallel does Hemingway draw between the fire-ravaged region Nick walks through at home and the war he has just left behind?

6. What are the main themes of the story which will become important throughout the entire book?

7. What is the significance of the character, Nick Adams, introduced in this chapter?

8. Stylistically, what is significant about the Memoir and story of Chapter 6?

9. How does the story's setting also serve as a metaphor?

10. Who is the narrator of the Memoir for Chapter 13, and with whom does he interact in this very short scene?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the importance of the Prelude, "On the Quai at Smyrna" to the rest of the book. What important parameters does it establish? What themes does it introduce? Why did Hemingway lead with this story?

Essay Topic 2

Explain the use of irony in the life and death situation in the logging camp where the Indian woman gives birth at the same time that her husband commits suicide. How does this experience affect Nick's outlook on life? Explain.

Essay Topic 3

In the story "The Battler" in Chapter 5, Nick is beaten by a train Brakeman but not punched at all by Ad Francis, a former prizefighter. Explain the irony in Nick's situation with these two different characters. What life lessons does Nick learn from each of them?

(see the answer keys)

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