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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 is Klara's reply when Raj asks her the secret of her Jaws of Life performance?

2. What is the address of the Gold family's apartment?

3. Even though Klara holds down two jobs as a receptionist and a restaurant hostess, she spends her weekends engaged in what activity?

4. What job does Gertie take after dropping out of college?

5. What is NOT named among Simon's "earliest memories of Ward 86" (87)?

Short Essay Questions

1. What differences between Robert and Simon does the author depict as those that drive Simon to cheat on Robert?

2. What is Robert's reaction to the AIDS epidemic and how does it differ from Simon's?

3. What does the narrator mean when describing Simon's impression of the Castro district as being like a "fallout shelter" (79)?

4. How do the Purp employees and owners react to the news of Harvey Milk's assassination and how do they take action?

5. How many years pass between the first knock Klara believes Simon is using to communicate with her from the afterlife and the second knock she hears?

6. How is an allusion to the story of Icarus used within the author's depiction of Simon's progression toward the date of his foretold death?

7. What aspects of Robert's character are depicted as those that make him "stand out" (59) to Simon?

8. How does Robert's story about his friend Dante demonstrate the themes of violence and hate?

9. What do the Gold children bring to the fortune teller as payment for her services and why?

10. Which of the Gold siblings is the most apprehensive about the prospect of visiting the fortune teller and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Determine the author's message regarding the idea that everyone's fate is predetermined. If she does not approve, prove it with evidence from the text and discuss the actions she presents as alternatives. If she does approve, prove it with evidence from the text and discuss the justification she provides for such an extreme position.

Essay Topic 2

How is the topic of revolution treated within the novel and how does its treatment relate to the book's depicted eras?

Essay Topic 3

What is the novel's message concerning the link between fate and free will?

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This section contains 1,365 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample