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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. Which of the following is not a means of recuperation Grossman endorses for PTSD in Chapter 3?

2. What story does Grossman end Chapter 4 with?

3. Which of the following is not an item that aids in rationalization and acceptance as delineated at the beginning of Chapter 2?

4. Which of the following is not a psychological process for enabling killing as set out in Chapter 1?

5. According to Grossman in Chapter 2, what is the purpose of after-mission briefings in modern wars?

Short Essay Questions

1. What changes have occurred in recent years to mitigate the psychiatric casualties of Vietnam?

2. What solution did the American military devise to deal with low firing rates in World War II?

3. In Chapter 5, how does Grossman illustrate the danger of refusing to take part in an atrocity?

4. What hypothetical situation does Grossman relate in Chapter 3?

5. How did John Foster rationalize killing a VC in Chapter 1?

6. According to Grossman in Chapter 3, what is the difference between military killing training and that provided by video games?

7. What factors traditionally assist in rationalization and acceptance after combat?

8. In Chapter 6, what factors contribute to a soldier's decision to kill in the chart presented and discussed?

9. What is the Weinberger Doctrine?

10. What evidence does Grossman provide that violence among youth has increased dramatically since the 1950s?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the urge not to kill over the course of history. What evidence does Grossman provide that soldiers going back to the American Civil War have chosen not to kill even in the face of death by enemy fire? What tactics did these soldiers use to avoid killing? At what point in the history of the American military did the non-firing problem become readily apparent? How did the military react to this?

Essay Topic 2

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 3

Write an essay about the root causes and addressing of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the American military? What step of the killing process is interrupted, leading to PTSD, and what factors are involved in this stunting of emotional processing? How does PTSD manifest itself? In what conflict did numbers of soldiers suffering from PTSD skyrocket? How long did it take the American military to address this concern, and what has been done?

(see the answer keys)

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