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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 John order for lunch instead of meat during his visit to Plum Island in Chapter 12?

2. What items does Paul Stevens ask to collect from the officers on the ferry, in Chapter 7?

3. What gives John goose bumps at the end of Chapter 6?

4. What local society did the Gordons belong to?

5. Who found the Gordons' bodies?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the appearance of Dr. Zollner.

2. What did the Gordons tell Margaret Wiley they planned to do with the land they purchased from her?

3. Describe the appearance of Donna Alba.

4. When John sees the pig dying of African swine fever in Chapter 12, what does it remind him of?

5. Describe the Gordons' house.

6. Describe the Olde Towne Taverne.

7. Why does Max want to bring John on as a consultant in the Gordon case?

8. Why doesn't John think that the Gordons would sell biological warfare materials?

9. What problem does John Corey see with doing nothing and boredom?

10. Why were Tom and Judy Gordon sometimes mistaken for celebrities?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One of the literary tools employed by DeMille in Plum Island is the use of paradox and irony. Give examples of where DeMille has employed verbal or situational irony and discuss in detail how this use of irony has furthered the plot, developed characters, or strengthened a theme.

Essay Topic 2

In Plum Island, John Corey serves as an archetypal hero character. Using specific examples from the text, identify how DeMille connotes the Hero archetype. Is it an effective connotation? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

In the preface, DeMille quote Benjamin Franklin, "Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead." Later in the novel, Beth also quotes this line. Discuss how this quote is a metaphor for the novel using specific textual evidence.

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