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Name: _________________________ | Period: ___________________ |
This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. Which of Mailer's writer friends is present in the Volkswagen with him in Chapter 2?
2. What type of overtones are part of Mailer's speech in Chapter 10?
3. Who arrives in in Chapter 4 as the protesters are forming ranks?
4. What is the highest estimate given in Chapter 5 for the number of marchers who may attend?
5. What good news does John Boyle give Mailer in Chapter 3?
Short Essay Questions
1. In the detain room in Chapter 3, what strikes Mailer about the people around him?
2. What metaphor does Mailer draw to the Pentagon in Chapter 4?
3. How does the tone of the novel shift dramatically at the beginning of Book II?
4. How does Mailer think about his family in Chapter 5?
5. Describe the scene in Occaquan at the beginning of Chapter 6.
6. Why is the Vietnam War fought, according to Mailer in Chapter 7?
7. How does Mailer fair in court in Chapter 9?
8. Describe the mood of the crown in the beginning of Chapter 4.
9. Describe the several movements the arrested marchers have to make in this section?
10. What do the Fugs do at the Pentagon in Chapter 5?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Norman Mailer is a large, robust, arrogant personality. His placement at the center of most of the novel creates a powerful presence the reader must contend with. Write an essay about the divergent components of Mailer's personality. Begin by discussing his engorged id. How does Mailer revel in excess int he early passages of the novel? What is he trying to achieve? In the second half of the essay, discuss the emerging of Mailer's better angels. How does this reflect another side to Mailer, one that wants to show respect and graciousness? How is the novel as a whole a reflection of this desire?
Essay Topic 2
Norman Mailer is an arrogant, hard-living, patently cynical person, but he cares passionately about what others think of him. When he sees someone who is more respected or more famous, Mailer is stricken with a combination of fascination and maddened jealousy. Write an essay about three such individuals. How does the narrative juxtapose these people with the character of Mailer? How does he react to them? Do they inspire anger, respect, or some combination of both in him?
Part 1) Robert Lowell
Part 2) William Sloane Coffin
Part 3) Noam Chomsky
Essay Topic 3
Near the end of the second book, Mailer enumerates the reasons why some people oppose the war in Vietnam. Write an essay about this logic, focusing on three of the groups he mentions. Do you think their reasoning in sound? What organizations and individuals represent this group in the narrative? Are there modern parallels to this group in today's society?
Part 1) Those who want Asia and, eventually, America to turn Communist.
Part 2) Those who are pacifists.
Part 3) Those who think the war is unjust.
This section contains 989 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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