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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. When at the Mutants' headquarters, the dump, for the second time, what does Batman finally accomplish?

2. After sharing his plans with Commissioner Gordon and Robin to defeat the Mutants, who does Batman meet at the Mutants' dump?

3. Who thwarts a 7-11 robbery in the name of Batman?

4. After the detonation of the nuclear weapons, what disables all the electronics in Gotham and the Western hemisphere?

5. When the riots are raging all over Gotham, Batman and Robin set out to what location to get help?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Batman utilize his brain instead of his brawn when fighting the Mutants' leader a second time?

2. Why does Batman think of Robin as a good soldier as she falls from the broken cable?

3. How is the last confrontation between The Joker and Batman in the House of Mirrors ironic?

4. Why does the author interchange the scenes of Captain Yindl arriving on her first day as commissioner and Commission Gordon's and Carrie's beginning with Batman?

5. What is the significance of the boy with the radio and the priest who thought to treat him in a mean manner during the aftermath of the electromagnetic pulse?

6. How does The Joker attempt to have one last laugh at Batman's expense?

7. How does Batman feel that Jason, the last Robin, was a good solider and honored him?

8. What is the importance of Superman's efforts to intercept the nuclear warhead from Russia?

9. Why does Batman ask the newly escaped ex-Mutants to help him restore order to Gotham City?

10. What does Superman mean when he refers to Bruce's "wild obsession"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Vigilantism is a major theme in "The Dark Knight Returns." Choose one of the characters (Bruce Wayne, Alfred, Clark Kent, Commissioner Gordon, Commissioner Yindel) and analyze how he/she reacts to acts of vigilantism throughout the story. Find descriptions from the text to support your answer and provide evidence for your opinion.

Essay Topic 2

How do the author's methods at the beginning of the novel set the tone?

Part 1) How does the report of Bruce Wayne's racing accident being mentioned during the same piece as the anniversary of the last Batman sighting affect the tone?

Part 2) How does Bruce Wayne's brush with death further the tone of restlessness?

Find descriptions from the text to support your answer and provide evidence for your opinion.

Essay Topic 3

In the beginning of the graphic novel, how does the perspective of distance between the past and the present affect the main protagonist, Bruce Wayne? Analyze how Bruce Wayne's character has/has not changed during the years since the he decided to put Batman away.

(see the answer keys)

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