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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 Chapter 2, what is significant about the Civil War muskets examined by Grossman?

2. What occurs as a result of exhaustion after the 60-day mark of continuous combat?

3. In Chapter 3, Grossman says what two stimuli most often impel soldiers to kill?

4. Aside from officers, which individuals are often killed in combat for their toll on morale?

5. Which of the following is not a contributing factor in determining whether a group easily unites in combat killing?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does hard-to-soft mean?

2. What role does enemy morale play in the choice to kill?

3. What options are open to soldiers in combat?

4. As discussed in Chapter 3, what is the emotional advantage of hand grenades?

5. What is a crew-served weapon?

6. How does the Yale electroshock study connect with Grossman's thesis in Chapter 1?

7. How was the Roman centurion model more effective than the Greek phalanx, according to Grossman?

8. How did mechanical distance change the perception of war in the 1990's?

9. At the beginning of the book, what personal prejudices does Grossman admit to?

10. What are the primary components of Exhaustion as outlined in Chapter 3?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At one point in ON KILLING, Grossman discusses the three external concerns that affect a combatant's choice to kill. Write an essay analyzing these three concerns. W hat is the essence of each factor? What gives it its power over the potential killer? How effective is it in catalyzing the killing and in mitigating the guilt that follows? Cite an example of this type of factor that is used in the book.

Part 1) Voice of Authority

Part 2) Group Absolution

Part 3) Attractiveness of the Target

Essay Topic 2

At one point in ON KILLING, Grossman describes the roots of fear and group bonding that can lead to an atrocity like the My Lai massacre. Write a three-part essay on the factors that lead to an atrocity in war, using My Lai as a framing device:

Part 1) How does fear of an unseen enemy make atrocities more likely in war? Discuss the way in which this creates emotional distance between noncombatants and soldiers. How does a catalyzing event, like an attack on the unit, further increase the likelihood of this sort of atrocity?

Part 2) What form of empowerment is felt in an atrocity? Discuss how the active and powerful decision to kill those whom one suspects of complicity in suffering can empower a soldier. What sort of possible catharsis can occur as a result?

Part 3) Discuss the group cohesion that can occur as a result of an atrocity? How does killing unarmed noncombatants bond a group of soldiers together? Conversely, discuss how the decision not to take part in an atrocity becomes dangerous as a result of this cohesion.

Essay Topic 3

A major subject and tonal shift occurs in the last third of ON KILLING when Dave Grossman turns his attention away from the military and toward civilian life. Write an essay about Grossman's opinions about modern American culture. How is the culture conditioning young people to be violent? How have traditional defenses against this deteriorated? What evidence does the author use to argue his points?

(see the answer keys)

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