View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Bud steals money from a family who are members of what?

2. Out of concern for Nell's safety (because two groups want her Primer), what does Judge Fang do?

3. Atlantis/Shanghai is protected by a grid of what?

4. What is the common name for the grid of microscopic sensors implanted in the bodies of ractors?

5. What do the guards do to incapacitate Bud, after his assault and robbery, until the constable arrives?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the significance of Hackworth's actions in "Hackworth Compiles the Young Lady's Illustrated Primer?"

2. In "Nell's Further Experiences with the Primer," how does the Primer reveal its ability to empathize with Nell and adapt to her needs?

3. In "Mysterious Souvenir from Dr. X," what amazing device does Hackworth receive when he inserts a card into a matter compiler?

4. When Bud visits the Peacock Bank in "Financial Complications of Bud's Lifestyle," what does he learn about credit and how defaults are handled?

5. In "From the Primer, the Arrival of a Sinister Baron," when Nell and Harv are abused by their mother's newest lover, Burt, how do both Nell and Miranda use the Primer to help Nell?

6. In "Hackworth Departs from Shanghai," what special reason does Hackworth have for giving a copy of the Primer to Fiona?

7. Describe the adventures and misadventures of Harv and Nell with the matter compiler in "Nell Learns to Work the Matter Compiler," with regard to making mattresses.

8. In "Miranda's Reactions to the Evening's Events," what advice does Carl Hollywood give to Miranda?

9. At the gates of Dovetail in "A Morning Stroll Through the Leased Territories," what special skill from the Primer does Nell use to gain the trust and respect of Constable Moore, who guards the town?

10. Compare Judge Fang's treatment of the young boy on trial in "A Young Hooligan before the Court of Judge Fang" with his treatment of Bud earlier in the novel.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the primary theme of "The Diamond Age"? Is the author more of a Confucian or Victorian at heart? What lesson would Neal Stephenson wish readers to take with them after reading his work?

Essay Topic 2

The author uses performances throughout the novel to propel the action, including ractor interactions in the Primer, theatrical plays, passives, actives, mediatrons, trance-like rituals, and scripted brothel fantasies. Discuss the author's use of drama within drama to forward the plot of "The Diamond Age".

Essay Topic 3

Track the gradually developing mother/daughter relationship between Miranda and Nell as it grows throughout the novel by way of the Primer, culminating in Nell's rescue of Miranda using skills she learned from the Primer.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,002 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample