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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. Which of the following locations is not one that Mailer mentions rioting over the Vietnam issue in Chapter 2?

2. In Chapter 3, Mailer states that left-wing groups should choose names similar to what?

3. What does Mailer intimate about his drinking the night before Chapter 1?

4. What is provided for the young men in Chapter 3's breakfast?

5. In Chapter 3, what concern does does Goodman have about the route to the Pentagon?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Norman Mailer as a character.

2. How is Robert Lowell received by the audience?

3. How does Mailer characterize the march to the Washington Monument in Chapter 2?

4. Why is Mailer late to emcee the event in Chapter 5?

5. Describe the interactions Mailer has with his fellow speakers at the party in Chapter 4.

6. How does Mailer annoy Ed de Grazia in Chapter 4?

7. What metaphor does Mailer use in Chapter 5 to describe the Vietnam controvery in America and who takes what sides?

8. What appraisal of Robert Lowell does Mailer make in en route to the Department of Justice in Chapter 3?

9. What rationalization does Mailer give for taking his book from the hostess's house in Chapter 5?

10. What is the plan for the Justice Department protest?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the protest culture that exists in the world of the novel. How does this culture affect the way famous people live their lives: in particular, how does the omnipresence of protest in America affect Mailer's decision to go to Washington, DC? How does the specter of the Martin Luther King, Jr. march on Washington hang over the events of the 1967 March in the novel? To what extent is the protest movement becoming somewhat rote in Armies of the Night?

Essay Topic 2

A good portion of the opening passages of Armies of the Night are as much about the niceties and snipes of the literary class in 1960's America as the protest culture of the same. Write an essay about Mailer's place and opinions in the world of prolific writers in the novel, focusing on three instances:

Part 1) Why does Mailer agree to come to the Pentagon march in Washington, DC? Discuss how this decision is more connected to his literary position in New York than his opinions on the Vietnam War? What does Mailer want to achieve through his involvement in the protest?

Part 2) Discuss the party held the first evening Mailer is in Washington, DC. What decisions does he make about the way that he treats the hostess? What is the reason for the awkward encounter Mailer has with Dwight Macdonald?

Part 3) Mailer enters the Ambassador presentation like a wrecking ball, attempting to destroy everyone around him. Discuss his reasons for doing this. What does he resent about those on the stage? How does Mailer want to be perceived by the audience? How does the popular reaction to his antics temper his behavior for the remainder of the weekend?

Essay Topic 3

More than midway through the novel, Mailer suddenly goes back in time and explains the planning of the March, events which he was not present for. Write an essay about the planning of the March, discussing which individuals and groups shaped it. What were the divergent opinions in terms of the locations and tactics of the March, and which one's won out in the end? Discuss individuals and groups who fell into conflict, why they did so, and how this affected the development of a strategy. In summation, determine whether the March had a coherent and unified planning process.

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