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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 did the narrator's college girlfriend at Antioch do?

2. What was the narrator's IQ at age 12?

3. How old was the Monkey when she arrived in New York?

4. On what street did the narrator's college girl friend grow up?

5. Where is the Monkey from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What story does Alex tell of the Monkey with the married couple?

2. What attracts Alex to Naomi? How does he express his feelings for her?

3. Where does Alex speak of taking a trip with the Monkey in Chapter 5? What did the voices of his parents say in his head as he drove?

4. What does the narrator retell about the burlesque show in Chapter 4?

5. What does the narrator say about the Monkey's life story in Chapter 4?

6. What does Alex remark about Israel?

7. What does the narrator say about his resentment for his Jewishness and shikses in Chapter 4?

8. What does Alex say about the photo of Jesus in Bubbles's house?

9. What is the title of Chapter 5? What does this refer to?

10. What, according to the narrator, are the worst sins he has committed in Chapter 4?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What are the predominant metaphors in Portnoy's Complaint? How does the author "set up" these metaphors? How do these major metaphors recur in the text? Define "metaphor" in your answer.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the different types of conflict in Portnoy's Complaint. What is the predominant conflict of the novel? What are some of the conflicts the narrator describes between himself and others?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the historical context of when this novel was published. How did this time period affect the reception of the novel and its subject matter? Could this novel have been received so well ten years prior? Why? Why not?

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