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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 does the narrator's father say his cousin Toby will never want for popularity?

2. What is the principle ailment of the narrator's father?

3. What is the name of the Company President whose picture hangs in the protagonist's family's hallway?

4. What does the narrator's father accuse his son-in-law of being?

5. Who is the narrator sitting next to on the bus in Chapter 4?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who does the narrator's father hold up as someone to emulate? Why?

2. What does Alex say his parents complain about regarding his sister and her husband in Chapter 4?

3. What are the protagonist's principle memories of his father from early childhood?

4. What does the narrator's mother believe he has been eating in Chapter 2? How does she react?

5. Where does Alex's family move during his childhood? When does this happen?

6. What resentments does the narrator recall following the family's move from Jersey City?

7. What is the story the narrator tells in the beginning of Chapter 4? Why does he do what he does in this story?

8. What is Chapter 2 primarily about?

9. What became of the narrator's cousin? Why?

10. Where does the narrator's father work? What line of business is he in? Where is his "route?"

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the theme of religion in Portnoy's Complaint. How does the narrator express his issues with Judaism? What are his feelings toward Christianity? How does religion tie into the other themes in the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the theme of Guilt/Shame in the novel. How does this relate to the narrator's feelings of rebellion? Where does this emotion resonate the most in the narrator? How does this affect his actions in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the theme of Sexual Obsession in Portnoy's Complaint. How does this theme intertwine with the other themes presented? How does this aspect of the narrator's personality drive his action?

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