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. Who wrote "Tragedy is second-hand" (157), according to the author in "Pain Tours (II)"?

2. Who wrote, "A sentimentalist is simply one who desires to have the luxury of an emotion without paying for it" (113)?

3. What Beatles' song does the author describe hearing on the loudspeakers at a Bolivian supermarket in 2007 in "Pain Tours (II)"?

4. Who wrote Infinite Jest?

5. How old was Dan Baglione when he ran the Barkley Marathons in 2006?

Short Essay Questions

1. How are Michael Moore's parents described in "Lost Boys"?

2. What were the supplies that Julian took on the race in "The Immortal Horizon"?

3. What are some of the examples of wounded women described by the author in "Grand Unified Theory of Female Pain"?

4. What did Cat tell the author about the history of West Virginia in "Fog Count"?

5. How does the author describe the word "saccharine" in the opening of "In Defense of Saccharine(e)"?

6. How were the West Memphis Three depicted and perceived by their community at the time of their trial?

7. How does the author compare sentimentality and artificial sweeteners in "In Defense of Saccharine(e)"?

8. The author gives "Some Important Dates in the History of Artificial Sugar" in "In Defense of Saccharine(e)." What are these dates and events?

9. What does the author describe the maid doing in Madame Bovary in "In Defense of Saccharine(e)"?

10. How is "Pain Tours (II)" structured?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the importance of setting in "La Frontera." What settings are described in this narrative essay? How does the author employ metaphor or similes in describing these settings? What mood do the settings evoke?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the importance of setting in "Pain Tours" (I). What settings are described in this three-part essay? How are these settings similar? How are they different? How do these settings connect to the theme(s) of this essay?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the narrative style in the essays contained in The Empathy Exams. From what perspective are the narratives related? Is the author's style more journalistic or more memoir? What are the effects of this narrative style on the reader?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 721 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample