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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. Into what port town do Marina and Lee arrive at the end of the chapter?
2. What religion is the first girl in Minsk that Lee proposes to?
3. What physical evidence form Oswald is Branch surprised to have in 2 July?
4. How does the U-2 pilot's testimony affect Oswald?
5. Where in Dallas does Lee Oswald run into Bobby Dupard?
Short Essay Questions
1. What calls Oswald's testimony into question in Minsk?
2. On October 4th, what does Branch learn about Kennedy's Miami visit?
3. Why is Oswald brought back to Moscow?
4. Why does Lee Oswald try to kill himself in Moscow?
5. Why does Carmine Latta help with the assassination attempt?
6. How does Lee Oswald decide to kill General Walker?
7. How does Lee have a falling out with the FBI in New Orleans?
8. What money problems is Jack Ruby facing on August 12th?
9. What role does writing play and Lee's life in Minsk?
10. What do Frank and Raymo commiserate about on July 2nd?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
In writing Libra, Don DeLillo faces the deep challenge to make an unimaginably despised man understandable. Write an essay in three parts discussing three unthinkable actions that Oswald undertakes in the novel:
Part 1) How does DeLillo dramatize Oswald's suicide attempt in Moscow? Discuss what leads up to this self-destructive act and whether Oswald seems committed to his own negation. What is going through Oswald's head as he cuts his wrists? What is relatable about these passages?
Part 2) How does Don DeLillo introduce domestic violence into the novel? Discuss how the author portrays the protagonist's mindset as he begins beating Marina. Why does he begin striking her? Can the reader understand his rationale.
Part 3) Discuss Lee Oswald's perception of the assassination as he plays his active role in it. Compare it to the reactions of those on the street. At what point does he acknowledge what he has done? Does she ever fully accept his culpability?
Essay Topic 2
Write an essay about insanity and disassociation in Libra. What mechanisms does Lee Oswald use to assume false identities, and how does this allow him disassociate himself from his actions? Discuss how Lee's view of the world becomes skewed. What delusions does he desperately hold on to? What false patterns does he begin to see in everyday life, and how does this fuel his willingness to kill Kennedy?
Essay Topic 3
The character of Marina Oswald is distinctly passive compared to the other major figures of the novel. Write an essay about Marina's function in Libra. How do she and Lee meet, and why does she come with him to America? Discuss how she reacts to his increasingly unhinged personality, including her coping with domestic abuse. How does Marina respond to the realization that Oswald killed the President?
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This section contains 1,068 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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