View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Old Bull Lee think of Dean?

2. Who do Sal and his friends stay with in New Orleans?

3. What favor does Remi ask of Lee Ann in San Francisco?

4. Who does Sal introduce to Dean with whom he forms a strong friendship?

5. What do Carlo and Dean take to help them stay up all night for their chat sessions?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who does Sal meet on the bus from Bakersfield to Los Angeles?

2. Why doesn't the driver offer Sal any food on his trip from Pittsburgh to New York?

3. What does Sal's aunt do when Dean is given a speeding ticket?

4. What is happening in Sal Paradise's life before he meets Dean Moriarty?

5. How does Sal get the money to travel from Denver to San Francisco?

6. Why do Sal and his hitchhiker friend, Eddie, part in Iowa?

7. What favor does Remi ask Lee Ann before he moves out of their house?

8. What do Sal, Ray Rawlins, and others do in an old mining town outside of Denver?

9. What is Sal's relationship like with Rita Bettencourt?

10. Why does Sal break up with Lucille?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At the time it was published, On the Road was considered rebellious and obscene. It also exalts criminals, swindlers, drifters, and drug users.

a. What does Sal Paradise find so appealing about the characters and situations he encounters? Why?

b. What distinction would Sal make between being a criminal and having a zest for life, if any?

Cite examples from the book to support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

In Des Moines, Sal experiences the distinction of the East of his youth and the West of his future.

a. What does the West represent to Sal?

b. Contrast his life when he is living on the east coast and when he is living out west.

c. How have his voyages changed his views on life?

Essay Topic 3

The quote, "Three writers does not a generation make," is sometimes attributed to Beat writer, Gregory Corso. Since the Beats only constituted a handful of writers, how would you explain the impact of the Beat Movement on future generations and the youth of today?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 627 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample