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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 Max Mercy do when he sees Roy and Memo return to the motel?

2. How does Memo Paris react when Bump dies?

3. What major item do the fans give Roy?

4. What does Roy think of Doc Knobb's help?

5. What happens when Roy and Memo go for a drive?

Short Essay Questions

1. Fatal or life-changing accidents seem prevalent in this story. Discuss at least two of them.

2. Shortly before the pennant game, what does Pop get angry with Roy about and what does he do about it?

3. What problem does Pop Fisher have with his pitcher, Fowler, and how does that affect the games?

4. What happens to the Knights when the first-place Pirates come to town to play against them?

5. What sort of fans follow the Knights?

6. What purpose does Malamud have for repeatedly using dreams in his story? Why is he employing this technique, and what point of view is it?

7. What did Pop tell Roy about the pennant game and his dreams?

8. What does The Judge do when Roy asks him for a raise?

9. What did Roy reveal to Iris about his life when they went driving after she cheered him on?

10. Why does Roy have doubts about playing with the Knights when he has longed for fifteen years to play with them? What about his dream changes when he meets the team?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Malamud wrote, "Sometimes as he watched the ball soar, it seemed to him all circles, and he was mystified at his devotion to hacking at it, for he had never really liked the sight of a circle. They got you nowhere but back to the place where you were to begin with." Discuss ways in which Roy travels in a circle, going nowhere but coming back to where he started from. Give examples from the book.

Essay Topic 2

There are several issues related to responsibility and moral integrity that Roy must face. Discuss them fully, supporting your ideas from the text.

Essay Topic 3

There are many themes developed in this novel. Discuss one of them and show how they are developed through the novel. Explain what Malamud is trying to tell the reader about that theme.

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This section contains 990 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample