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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. The narrator is angry when the magazine he works for publishes an article denouncing ______________________.

2. What is another reason that the narrator is having a better time being homosexual?

3. What does Sean call a group of men he accidentally encountered having sex in a public bathroom?

4. Why does Maria move to the city in #134?

5. Who is Sean?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Sean's comment about a group of men having sex in a public restroom as being "subhuman" have a particular sting for the narrator?

2. Who is Lou and how does the narrator meet him?

3. What do the narrator's parents--and society in general--consider to be a "normal" lifestyle for their son?

4. Why is Lou desperate to get married and how does the narrator help him?

5. What is the significance of the narrator's sister's visit and her revelation of being a lesbian?

6. What does the narrator consider for his life after Paul commits suicide in order to leave a world that rejects people like him?

7. How does the narrator's decreasing shame mirror what is going on in the gay community in general?

8. What is significant about the energy created among the men after the group sexual encounter in the subway restroom

9. What eventually happens to Sean who is conflicted by his own identity?

10. How are the narrator's parents portrayed in the book and what do they want most for their son?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain the taboo of homosexuality in the 1950s and 1960s. Compare and contrast homosexuality in America during this time to homosexuality in America today. What major changes have occurred--both positive and negative?

Essay Topic 2

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 3

Substance abuse seems to be an unnamed character in the book. How pervasive is the abuse? Why does it have such a prevalent place in the characters' lives? How does it affect the abusers? How does it affect those impacted by the abusers? Explain how an inanimate object or characteristic can be a character.

(see the answer keys)

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