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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 Kitty tell Will that he can never see Allison again?

2. How old was Will when we went on the cross country trip with his father?

3. What does Will propose to do for the man he met on the bus?

4. Will thinks that you don't actually learn anything in life that you didn't already know at what age?

5. What does Will say when Jack suggests that he take up railroading?

Short Essay Questions

1. What psychological breakthrough does Will make as he sits in his car thinking?

2. What does Allison enjoy about taking care of Will that makes her think she should nurse comatose patients?

3. When Will sees himself in the mirror of his Mercedes after leaving the greenhouse, what does he think he looks like?

4. Why does Will end up needing to be in Dr. Vance's daily care?

5. What forces Will to leave the cave?

6. What is the first thing Kitty says after Will recognizes her when she wakes him up in his car in the parking lot?

7. Why does Will get into a fight with Kitty at the nursing home?

8. What urgent message does Bernie have for Will when Will gets back home after being away in the cave and the greenhouse?

9. What skills do the three old guys who Will befriends in the convalescent home possess?

10. What news does Kitty tell Will about her family when they talk in the parking lot of the country club?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Will's guns become important symbols that we as readers associate with him throughout the novel. Write an essay explaining the significance of each gun (the Luger, the Greener, and the Sterlingworth) and what each comes to mean individually, as well as what the guns represent collectively for Will. Why do you think Walker Percy chose these objects to associate with Will? Does the meaning change over time?

Essay Topic 2

Two of the main characters, Will and Allison, are both diagnosed with a form of mental illness in the novel. Discuss the theme of mental illness and how Walker Percy treats these two "mentally ill" characters versus the "mentally healthy" characters. What do you think this difference indicates about the author's position on the treatment of mentally ill patients? Use examples from the text and compare and contrast the treatment of Will and Allison with two other "mentally healthy" characters.

Essay Topic 3

Walker Percy revisits several themes or motifs throughout the novel including: memory, mental illness, self-discovery, independence, religion, nature, and love. Can you think of other themes or motifs from the novel? Write an essay discussing the most important theme or motif from the novel; that is, the one you think the author discusses the most or seems to feature as being the most important. Provide examples from the text to support your argument.

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