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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. Where does the man at the end of Chapter Eleven shoot?

2. Where does Bill find Josella's district to be?

3. What does Bill notice is attracted to the farm?

4. Where do Coker and Bill go at the end of Chapter Nine?

5. What does the group see at night on the roof?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain some of the mishaps that befall Bill as he journey's to find Josella.

2. Describe the three people Bill and Coker meet in Beaminster.

3. What was Coker's response to Miss Durrant's chastising of his brutal methods at University Tower?

4. Why do you think the small groups located by helicopter in Chapter Twelve choose not to join other groups?

5. Describe how Bill first discovers the plague, its symptoms, and its result.

6. Explain what Bill finds at Tynsham.

7. Describe Bill's view of loneliness.

8. Explain how Coker describes himself, and his abilities.

9. Explain Josella's fears about her wedding.

10. Explain how Susan comes to travel with Bill.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Loneliness is a constant theme in the novel, and in several cases, is the cause for severe depression or drastic decisions. Choose a part of the story where loneliness plays an important part (such as in the beginning of Chapter Thirteen, where Bill is searching for Josella). What causes the character's loneliness? What are the effects of the emotion? Could the person have solved the issue? What does this say about the effect of loneliness on humans? Why is this effect so profound?

Essay Topic 2

The Day of The Triffids was written in 1951, after WWII. Do you think WWII had an influence on the themes in the novel? Why or why not? If so, what themes are present in the novel that lead you to believe so? If not, why do you think, then, that Wyndham references America as a saving country and the date the bomb dropped on Hiroshima (pg. 95)? Do you think there are threads of communism, socialism, the Cold War, and other WWII themes in the novel? How are those themes represented in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

There are several incidents of suicide in the novel. Choose from one of the following and describe, in detail, the circumstances behind the suicide, and your thoughts on the person's act. Were they smart to end their lives or was the act cowardly? What were their alternatives? What would you have done in their positions?

• The landlord of the tavern in Chapter One.

• The couple in Chapter Five.

• The young woman in Chapter Eight.

(see the answer keys)

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