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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. How can the narrator's father best be described?

2. What does the person in #38 exploit Tex for?

3. When the narrator tells his mother he is going to a dance, he is actually going ____________________.

4. At what kind of party does the narrator meet the man in #91?

5. The narrator mentions __________________ vacation in Chapter 2.

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the narrator want from his life and when does he become aware of these needs?

2. What role do emotions play in the narrator's sexual relations with other men and the sexual relations of homosexual men in general?

3. How does the narrator's coming of age as a gay man mirror the coming of age of an entire gay community?

4. What are some of the narrator's fundamental beliefs about sexuality?

5. With whom does the narrator have his first gay sexual experience and how does he feel about it afterward?

6. With whom does the narrator engage in heterosexual activity and what was the basis for the connections?

7. How do Maria and the narrator feel about each other by the end of Chapter 4, and how do they act on those feelings?

8. Why is the narrator the embodiment of sacrificing oneself for the sake of social acceptance?

9. What are some of the themes addressed in "The Beautiful Room is Empty"?

10. What is Tex's theory about a man acting on his sexual desires for other men and how does that make the narrator feel about Tex?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The theme of struggling with personal identity is an important one in this novel. Describe how it extends through setting, character and issues and provide examples for each.

Essay Topic 2

The latter part of the novel takes place in the late 1960s as America is experiencing free love, war protests, gay liberation and radical shifts in music. Research this period in America and create a multimedia presentation of the clothes, food, music and people during

Essay Topic 3

Explain the significance of the novel's title--"The Beautiful Room is Empty". Why did White choose this title? Is there an understood message in the title? Is there another title you can suggest that might be more appropriate?

(see the answer keys)

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