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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. In Chapter 10, Taft gives Tommy Lawson's son tips on what?

2. How does Fay get back into Muddy's in Chapter 11?

3. What does Franklin ask to do at the end of Chapter 7?

4. In Chapter 8, What does Fay pointedly ask John?

5. What does Fay ask John at the very beginning of Chapter 9?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mrs. Woodmore request of John in Chapter 12?

2. What difficulty do John and Fay face in bailing Carl out in Chapter?

3. Why does Taft ask his children to stay home Friday night?

4. What does Fay ask John at dinner in Chapter 9?

5. Why is John deeply gladdened by his morning with Marion and Franklin in Chapter 11?

6. What assessment does the mechanic in Chapter 10 make regarding Taft's car?

7. What happens at dinner in Chapter 7.

8. What does Wallace tell John about Carl in Chapter 8?

9. How does Marion's friend, the doctor, help John in Chapter 11?

10. How is John shot in Chapter 11?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Over the course of the novel, Carl Taft appears to be a dangerous and dynamic character. The reader experiences him at many points in his life. Write a three-part essay about the trajectory Carl Taft takes over the course of the novel:

Part 1) What is Carl's life like before his father dies? Discuss what he values in life and what challenges he faces. What does his father do to keep him in line? What mistakes does he make in his adolescent years?

Part 2) Discuss the significance of Taft's death in Carl's life. How is his experience of this tragedy different from his sister's and mother's? What makes it more painful for him, and what significant collapse occurs in his character before he leaves Coalfield?

Part 3) How does the world of Memphis prove horribly detrimental to Carl's life? Discuss how bad habits and addiction become near-suicidal in the larger city? What is Carl's low point and how is he partially redeemed by the end of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

In the insular world of Memphis as represented in this novel, many individuals have opinions regarding John's personal life. In particular, the Woodmoore family insinuates itself into his relationship with Marion. Write an essay about each of the Woomoore family-members's opinions. What does this person think John should do regarding his ex-wife? Why is this opinion held, and how does the character express the opinion to John over the course of the novel?

Part 1) Mr. Woodmoore.

Part 2) Mrs. Woodmoore.

Part 3) Ruth.

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, many of Carl Taft's true objectives remain unknown to John Nickel and the reader. Write an essay discussing how these objectives are obscured and finally revealed. What drives Carl after his arrival in Memphis, and why is he treated as a lovable screw-up? How does this notion of his harmlessness prove to be incorrect? Discuss how Patchett reveals the fallacy of this notion, and what changes in the world of the novel after it is revealed.

(see the answer keys)

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