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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. Why is Harriet supposed to come home?

2. At the hotel, Sandy is largely responsible for what?

3. Why are the kids not treated equally?

4. When Sandy tires of listening to the other men, what does he do?

5. The story then flashes back _______ days when Sandy came home from work.

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the title, "The Doors of Life," significant?

2. Describe Hager's funeral.

3. How does Sandy come to the decision to get his education? How does this change his mind?

4. How does Sandy's life change after Hager's death?

5. What does Hager have to say about the soul and the world?

6. Should Sandy have dumped Pansetta?

7. Why does Sandy want to move to Chicago?

8. What takes place in the Pool Hall? Why?

9. How does Sandy feel about what Aunt Hager had taught him? Why does he feel this way?

10. How has Harriett grown up? How is this revealed in what she says to Sandy and Annjee?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Most of the characters in this story are women.

Part 1) Why might the author have made most of the characters women? What generalization can you make about these women? What generalization can you make about the men in the story? How do the women compare to the men? What does this reveal about the culture of the time and the author?

Part 2) What might this story have been like if most of the characters were men? Would it be different? Why or why not? Why has the author put an importance and an emphasis on women, especially considering the author is a man?

Part 3) Compare these women to the women in your own life. How are they similar? How are they different? What might account for these similarities and differences? Although most of the characters are women, can men relate to these characters? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Many characters in this book suffer.

Part 1) Describe the suffering that takes place in this book. Why does it take place? How do the different characters deal with this suffering? What does this reveal about them? How are the characters affected by it? How does this suffering affect the plot of the story?

Part 2) Does such suffering exist today? If so, where and why? If not, why not? Describe a time when you have suffered. How did it affect you?

Part 3) How can suffering be beneficial? How do the characters in this story benefit from suffering? How has your own life benefited from suffering?

Essay Topic 3

Many conversations about life take place between the chapters.

Part 1) Describe two of these conversations. Why do they take place? What do they reveal about the characters involved in the conversation? What do they reveal about others in the story?

Part 2) What do these conversations reveal about the culture of the time? What do they also reveal about our culture today? How has our culture changed since this time? Is this a positive change? Why or why not?

Part 3) How can you relate to these conversations? When have you had similar conversations? How are conversations about life necessary? How do conversations such as these aid one in understanding oneself and others?

(see the answer keys)

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