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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 Hank see, that he had bought when he was a boy, in his mother's basement when he is getting her suitcase for her?

2. What does Leo aspire to be?

3. What is Hank's job at Railton College?

4. Why does he think his father might have had this affliction?

5. After Hank meets with Dickie Pope, what colleague tells him that he will vote for having Hank recalled as chair of the department if Hank doesn't do as he wishes?

Short Essay Questions

1. The morning after his news debut, Hank realizes the film has been shown on Good Morning, America, much to everyone's amusement. Hank heads to see Campbell Wheemer. What is Hank's nickname for Wheemer? Why does he call him that? How is Wheemer a contrast to Hank?

2. The evening after Teddy drops Hank off at home, what does Hank decide to do? Where does he end up and what is the result of this?

3. After seeing Bodie in her office and going to his own office, Hank is on his way out but is stopped by a couple of his colleagues. Who are they and what do they want?

4. Why is Hank under pressure from his department colleagues at the beginning of the book? What does this result in at a staff meeting?

5. In the Prologue, how does Hank explain that his life was not easy as a child?

6. When Hank gets home from the staff meeting, who is he greeted by? What does Hank find amusing about Teddy's reaction?

7. After Hank leaves Bodie Pie's office, what does he notice is happening again?

8. What events transpired after the dog arrived at the Devereaux home?

9. The morning after Hank is hit in the nose at a staff meeting, he walks across campus and notices a construction site. What will this site be and what does Hank think about it?

10. What is the narrator, Hank's, full name and what is his occupation? Where does he work?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Dialogue often serves to reveal characters and their traits, as well as events. It is often used as an alternative to exposition. How is dialogue used as a literary technique to move a narrative along, and specifically how is it utilized in Straight Man? Cite, in detail, one example of how dialogue is used effectively in the novel.

Essay Topic 2

For the better part of the novel, Hank seems to be suffering what is popularly known as mid-life crisis. What actions and reactions of Hank's show that he might be having a crisis of identity? Explain where this crisis of identity might arise from.

Essay Topic 3

What role does the Devereaux family play in the novel "Straight Man"? Are they as important to the narrative as the author and the environment he is in? Give four examples where the four different members of the family are central to the story-telling. Give four examples where the narrative is focused only on Hank and the environment he works in.

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