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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. Who does Stephen's mother decide to marry after she sees the child in the window?

2. What does Stephen take while Charles retires at the house?

3. What does Thelma say that Charles is, at the end of Chapter 5?

4. Who appears to talk to Stephen at the subcommittee in a formal way?

5. How does Stephen avoid an accident with the truck?

Short Essay Questions

1. When the secretary insists that Stephen meet with the Prime Minister, how does he respond?

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

3. What does Stephen realize after going to the school and not finding Kate?

4. Why does the young man at the subcommittee meeting believe that learning written languages at an early age is not a good idea?

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

6. Why does the handbook excerpt say that it is acceptable to bribe children for good behavior?

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

8. What was Stephen's experience in Africa as a child?

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

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Child In Time is particularly effective in conveying meaning through powerful imagery. Powerful imagery to establish connections in the minds of readers with the story's characters and plot. Imagery is the picture we form in our minds of the story we read. It can involve, visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, tactile, kinetic, and kinesthetic. The author uses these imagery to translate words into a visual story that we can see and participate in within our minds. Describe the use of imagery in this dystopian novel.

Essay Topic 2

McEwan uses more than one iteration on the theme of disappointment. Identify at least two characters who either embody or experience disappointment then cite an example to support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

Describe some of the settings for The Child In Time. What is the overall setting? Be sure to include geography, time period and any pertinent popular culture events. Why did McEwan choose to use these places in The Child In Time?

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This section contains 974 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample