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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 Pendergast believe the creatures spared their lives?

2. How long is the dump of a hundred million gallons of water expected to take?

3. What is the purpose of the moles' banging on the pipes?

4. What are the Wrinklers doing in the Crystal Pavilion when Margo looks down on them in horror?

5. What does Pendergast give to D'Agosta that causes D'Agosta to say that they have enough firepower to invade China?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is a seemingly positive side effect of the reovirus infection? What might this mean to future testing?

2. Why do you think the creatures abduct the group determined to destroy them instead of killing them like they have everyone else?

3. What does Pendergast find in the Crystal Pavilion that causes him alarm? Why do you think these things scare him?

4. What purpose might hallucinogenic mushrooms serve in the ceremony that Kawakita established?

5. How does Pendergast use his shocking albinism to "blend in" with the outcasts of society in the tunnels? What other methods does he employ, and how is he successful?

6. What purpose does the scene with the Navy SEALs have?

7. What would be the far-reaching effects of drowning the Wrinklers in the manner mentioned in Chapter 40?

8. What do you think are Pendergast's true intentions in leaving Margo behind when he, Mephisto, and D'Agosta try to destroy the Wrinklers?

9. Why does Pendergast make a second trip into the tunnels?

10. What does Smithback view that leads him to believe his ambition might have finally taken him too far? Do you think his fear is because he feels his mortality or because he has seen the mortality of others?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The flooding of the tunnels to destroy the creatures is an extreme step, especially given the number of innocent people who could be in danger from the flooding. What purpose do you think this moral ambiguity will serve? Do you see it in any other situations in the book? Do you think it serves the same purpose in that instance?

Essay Topic 2

The author incorporates extensive use of similes and metaphors to "illustrate" this novel. For example, he states that, "The Reservoir itself was a sheet of beaten gold in the sunset." Can you think of any other examples cited in the text? What does the use of similes and metaphors add to the story?

Essay Topic 3

Though Dr. Brambell and Dr. Frock disagree often, they do agree on one thing: the skeletons show obvious signs of teeth marks. Compare/contrast their first theories on the teeth marks in the bone, how they got there, and what type of animal might have left them. What do you think is the true source of their contention?

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This section contains 865 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample