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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who is the author of The Elephant?
(a) Jorge Luis Borges.
(b) Mark Halplin.
(c) Heinrich Boll.
(d) Slawomir Mrozek.

2. What rises in the water at the end of On Hope?
(a) A demon.
(b) An angel.
(c) A shark.
(d) An octopus.

3. What is the name of the man the central female character falls in love with after the death of her husband in Happy Endings?
(a) Mark.
(b) Michael.
(c) Paul.
(d) Fred.

4. Where is the author of An Insolvable Problem of Genetics from?
(a) Germany.
(b) Russia.
(c) Poland.
(d) Czechoslavakia.

5. Who wrote the story La Volpaia?
(a) Jamaica Kincaid.
(b) Yasunari Kawabata.
(c) Mark Helprin.
(d) Joyce Carol Oates.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the gypsy in On Hope train monkeys to do?

2. Who wrote the story Gregory?

3. The older Maori tribesman died while doing what in At the River?

4. The girl falling 30 meters above Marta in The Falling Girl is wearing what?

5. What is the name of the central male character in Happy Endings?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the older Borges doing in August 25, 1983? What is the reaction of the younger Borges?

2. What unifies the stories At the River, The Blue Jar, Gregory and Iguana Hunting?

3. What stories in the beginning of the collection focus on the theme of aging? How do these stories relate to one another?

4. What is the central conflict facing the family in An Insolvable Problem of Genetics? How do they go about remedying it?

5. Describe the time span and theme in The Blue Jar?

6. Discuss and describe the imagery in the story Blackberries. How does this imagery support the narrative's themes?

7. What happens once the inflatable elephant is built in The Elephant?

8. What is the setting of Blue? What is troubling the citizens in the narrative?

9. Who is the central character in House Opposite? What decision does he make in the narrative?

10. Who is the central character in The Grass-Eaters? What is his objective?

(see the answer keys)

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