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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 Uncle Otto do to finance the purchase of the land?

2. Whom does the narrator kill while with Nona?

3. What other item does the milkman add to his delivery?

4. What lie does Henry tell Thorpe?

5. Where is Richard Pine when he writes in his diary?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do you think would be the worst part of being afflicted as Brower is in "The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands"? Use examples from the text to support your theory.

2. What type of irony can be found within "Survivor Type"? Be sure to use examples from the text to support your theory.

3. Children are often frightened by elderly relatives. Everything about them seems foreign and frightening. Do you think George's fear of Gramma was instinctual or merely the usual fear a child has of older people?

4. Henry encourages a writer who apparently believes in the whimsical creatures about which he writes. Henry begins the encouragement out of amusement and boredom. Do you think the resulting actions leading to the writer's death were what Henry expected to happen?

5. Think about the setting of "The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands." How does the setting of this story add to its scary feeling?

6. Foreshadowing is when an event early in the story hints at an event to take place later in the story. Find an example of foreshadowing in "The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands." Cite the foreshadowing event and the event it foreshadows.

7. Rocky seems to be a bit of an intimidator himself. Though it is long past closing time, he coerces his friend into giving his car an inspection sticker. What do you think this says about Rocky?

8. Often, a killer's choice of weapon will say a lot about that person. What do you think Spike's method of operation and choice of weapon say about him?

9. What is an example of a metaphor used in "Beachworld" and what comparison is it trying to convey?

10. Compare Henry and Reg and how their relationship affected them both.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Taking into consideration the volume of work involved in this book, how do you analyze the format of "Notes." Is this really the ending you expect from Stephen King? Do you think King's unpredictability is part of his charm?

Essay Topic 2

Using "Skeleton Crew" as your example, describe how Stephen King's writing style brought new fans to the horror genre. What does he use that most other horror writers don't? How does his incorporation of humor add to his stories? What do you think he does differently than other writers? What seems to be "textbook" about his approach to writing?

Essay Topic 3

The horror genre is one of the most uncomplicated forms of entertainment and is characterized by the author's effort to produce fear in the reader through the use of antagonists such as monsters, ghosts, or even feral animals. The basic concept is the same: the hero must fight against horrific forces for his life and often his soul. Choose one of the stories in "Skeleton Crew" and explain how it fits into the horror genre and how it follows the horror genre formula.

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