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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. Who issues the order to let the men go?

2. Downs accidentally steps on what type of a trap?

3. Downs' platoon is split into how many parts?

4. Downs convinces soldiers that he is a ____.

5. One of the civilians is a teenager who is shot in the ____.

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to a soldier from the Alpha Company's 3-6 platoon?

2. What is the plan issued to Downs by Captain Sells?

3. How and why is Downs rewarded for his actions in the field?

4. How does Downs win the battle with the NVA soldier?

5. Explain the scene in which the Alpha Company engages in a large scale battle.

6. The day after the conflict, there is another ambush. Who is ambushed? The recent events cause the men to have what realization? What is the reaction of the soldiers?

7. Discuss at least one way in which the American soldiers can attack the Vietcong without being located.

8. The American soldiers stumble upon a Vietcong camp. Describe what happens next.

9. Where are the American soldiers sent to next?

10. What are some of Downs' ongoing complaints regarding the ARVN?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the statistics mentioned in the book. Explore the accuracy of the details. What other details should have been included? Which details may have been more pertinent? What else should have been said about the end of the war? How did the end of the war affect the hundreds of thousands of military personnel and their families? Were there any other wars in recent history that equaled the one in Vietnam?

Essay Topic 2

Downs was among a long line of other soldiers wounded in the line of duty. Examine and discuss various types of wounds that are mentioned in the book. How were the majority of the wounds inflicted? What is the standard treatment of a non-serious wound? What is the standard treatment for a potentially fatal wound? Who attends to the soldiers when they are wounded? How common is it for doctors to be present and to take care of the wounds? When doctors are not around, who performs the work?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how Downs must have felt arriving back in the United States after being in Vietnam. How would you have felt in the same situation? Which would feel stranger to you - arriving in the States or going home to your house? Explain. Also, write about how friends and family might treat you differently after you returned home from war. What kind of treatment would one expect? Would it be different depending on amount or extent of wounds? Would it be different if the wounds were physical or mental?

(see the answer keys)

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