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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 Harry say the women will do to him if he does not take Nelson into the business?

2. What state did Charlie take Melanie to before taking her to Ohio?

3. What does Nelson call his parents?

4. Who is Harry thankful that Janice does not talk about?

5. What does Thelma suffer from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Charlie tell Harry about the situation with Nelson?

2. What lie does Harry tell Charlie?

3. How does Pru injure herself?

4. What does Ma Springer call the family into the living room to talk about?

5. What does Harry think about as he runs through Brewer?

6. What has happened to Janice's Maverick?

7. What do Pru and Nelson do in Brewer?

8. How does Harry cope with sailing the tiller?

9. What happens when Harry tries to visit Ruth again in chapter 3?

10. What do Nelson and Pru talk about in Ma Springer's big Chrysler?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Away from the main character examine the way the author uses the other characters in the book. When does he introduce and take them away from the story? What effect does it have on the story?

Essay Topic 2

Choose one of the following and examine it what expresses about 1980s society:

1) The gold coins.

2) The lot.

3) Sex.

Essay Topic 3

Examine the representation of sex in the novel:

1) How do the characters in the novel view sex? What does this express about eighties society?

2) How did the public react to the novel's sex scenes when it was first published? How would the public react to similar scenes today?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 700 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample