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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. As they descend from the top of the mountain many men are attacked by which of the following:

2. The plan entails going to a local ____ to ambush the Vietcong.

3. Downs decides to take the time off to fly to which location?

4. What items are taken when the soldiers search the huts?

5. The troops are flown farther north near what large body of water?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. Who arrives to assist the soldiers? What happens during the operation?

4. Explain Downs' escape and the attack on the other men.

5. Explain what the author means by the genocidal aspect of the war. How does Downs justify this behavior?

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

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

8. Where are the American soldiers sent to next?

9. Where is the Tam Ky province? How is it similar to the old base camp outside Duc Pho?

10. What happens to the wounded men? What can the soldiers do to save them?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the extensive type of treatment that Downs had to receive as a result of the gunshot wound and eventual amputation. What kind of preliminary treatment did Downs receive? What is the biggest danger to a soldier immediately following an encounter with a land mine? What is the worst part of the recovery? What actions can be taken to help amputees? How did Downs fare after his treatments?

Essay Topic 3

Compare and contrast the personal and professional lives of Sells and Downs. Which was more experienced? Which had sharper skills? What was the personal relationship between the two men? How did others view the men as commanding officers and experts? Do you think Sells and Downs are the type to maintain a relationship outside the military? Explain.

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