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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 Thompson claim he was not in his letter in the Introduction?

2. What newspaper did Thompson quote with the line, "Kept authorities at bay for more than an hour, claiming to be George Harrison of the Beatles"?

3. Who was screaming in the background of the headset on the plane in "Mescalito"?

4. What were the police and ambulances scrambling toward as Thompson watched in the beginning of "Mescalito"?

5. ______________were all over the carpet in Thompson's room.

Short Essay Questions

1. What interactions had Thompson had with the Hell's Angels? When was this cited in "Mescalito"?

2. What combination of drugs had Thompson taken?

3. To whom did Thompson make a phone call in "Mescalito"? Why?

4. What scene on the Pacific Coast Highway did Thompson describe in "Mescalito"?

5. Describe the narrative style of "Mescalito."

6. Who was Hubert Humphrey and why did Thompson discuss him in "Mescalito"?

7. What metaphor did Thompson made in describing his brain while tripping?

8. What did Thompson write about Alfie's?

9. Why had a dope freak tried to steal the Goodyear blimp in "Mescalito"?

10. What was Thompson able to do with extraordinary speed and precision while tripping?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the narrative structure of "Death of a Poet." How does the narrative point of view in this story differ from the other selections in Screw-jack?

Essay Topic 2

Describe Thompson's interaction with the employee at the car rental station in "Death of a Poet." What does this interaction show the protagonist to be?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the title character in "Screwjack." What kind of animal is Screwjack? What is he symbolic of in the narrative?

(see the answer keys)

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