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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 Ray see as being the only decent activity left in the world?

2. Who does Ray spend time with when the rest of the family is gone for the day?

3. At what time do the three men begin the summit attempt at Matterhorn?

4. What does Morley rent from the trail's lodge house?

5. What does the other bum on the train tell Ray can be cured by standing on one's head and drinking honey with milk?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the way Japhy decides to descend the mountain.

2. Where is Japhy and Ray's campsite for the night?

3. List the four men who sit together at Japhy's small home, drinking wine together and discussing poetry.

4. Describe the house where Ray Smith is staying.

5. What happens later in the night which upsets Alvah, and rightfully so?

6. How well prepared does Ray feel at the end of his shopping excursion with Japhy?

7. How does Ray feel once they have reached a higher point of elevation as they hike up to Matterhorn?

8. What do the bums of San Francisco tell Ray there is great money to be made in doing?

9. Describe Princess as she is seen by Ray Smith when he arrives at Ray and Alvah's house.

10. Once they reach a beautiful lake along their hike, what does Morley do?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The idea of 'yabyum' is one that is not only mysterious in the beginning of the story, but also even more mysterious as it is 'revealed' to Ray.

Part 1: How is the idea of yabyum defined by Japhy?

Part 2: How is Ray introduced to the idea of yabyum?

Part 3: Does yabyum seem to be truly experienced by these men? Or is it just an excuse to have sex as often as possible? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

The voice of the narrator is always a concern for a novel. Since the author's own life and opinions often influence the narration, the narrator's voice must be questioned.

Part 1: Who is the narrator of this novel?

Part 2: What does the narrator bring to the story and the telling of the story?

Part 3: How does this particular narrator affect the telling of the story? Is he/she a positive or negative influence on the story telling? Is he/she they trustworthy?

Essay Topic 3

One might say the sexualized descriptions of the women in this story are an indication of Kerouac's own feelings about women and his own perceptions of women.

Part 1: Describe the female characters who are introduced in this novel.

Part 2: What are the motivations of these women, as one can tell from reading about their actions? What does this say about the author's feelings about women?

Part 3: Which female character is the most important to the story? Why?

(see the answer keys)

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