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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. What does Stephen notice as a change in his parents when he visits them after attending the subcommittee meeting?

2. What does Stephen continue to work on, especially regarding Julie?

3. What does Stephen NOT buy at the toy store?

4. When the chauffeur refuses to stop, what does Stephen do?

5. What does the driver of the truck want Stephen to do for him?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the unspoken rule that Stephen's father breaks when Stephen visits the family after meeting the Prime Minister?

2. How does Stephen respond to the Prime Minister's secretary's request for a second meeting?

3. Why does Stephen want to get out of the Prime Minister's car?

4. How are Stephen's parents affected by the loss of Kate?

5. When the chauffeur arrives to pick up Stephen, how does he respond to Stephen's comments about the ragged car?

6. How does the headmaster respond when Stephen tells his story about Kate?

7. What does Stephen purchase for Kate's birthday and what does it signify to him?

8. How does Stephen work through his feelings about Julie and her leaving him?

9. When Stephen talks about his bicycle memory near the sea, how do his parents respond?

10. When Stephen rescues the truck driver, how does the man respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Certain relationships create a good foundation for the story. When Stephen asks his parents about his bicycle memory by the sea, they all interact in a very convincing manner.

Describe why this relationship is believable.

Essay Topic 2

Ian McEwan is a master at dramatic devices. Choose an example of symbolism, metaphors, and irony, briefly describe them and identify the technique which they embody.

Essay Topic 3

Through Stephen, McEwan offers a lens to view the government and corruption via the committees. He describes the officials in The Child In Time as self-serving. Describe the typical government worker in The Child In Time. Do you think this is realistic and characteristic of today? Do you think the issues that McEwan discusses are still relevant today and if so, in what ways?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,052 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample