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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. In Story 8, what is the military woman at the tavern's marital status?

2. Who is the orderly at the hospital is a friend of the narrator in Story 6?

3. According to the narrator in Story 7, Michelle leaves him permanently for a man named ________.

4. What is Happy Hour as it is referred to in Story 9?

5. According to the narrator in Story 8, where does the narrator meet the "second man"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the relevance of picketers standing outside the abortion clinic in Story 7?

2. Briefly describe the "second man" in Story 8.

3. Discuss the relationship between John Smith and Michelle.

4. What is the irony behind the title of the story "Happy Hour"?

5. Where does the action of the second part of Story 8 take place? Describe this location.

6. Discuss the importance of Terrence's knife in Story 6.

7. What happens when the narrator goes to visit a pair of friends in Story 8?

8. Who is the only female in Story 7 that is given a name? Why is she the only one the narrator names?

9. Briefly discuss the three train rides the narrator recalls in Story 7.

10. How did Bill receive his bullet holes? How do these bullet holes haunt Bill?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay describing the connection between Story 3: "Out on Bail" and Story 6: "Emergency."

Essay Topic 2

Show how the author's manipulation of time contributes to the effectiveness of Jesus' Son as a whole.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how the narrator can be defined as a tragic figure. Explain how the suffering brought upon others by the narrator contributes to the tragic vision of the book as a whole.

(see the answer keys)

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