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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. Where did Moitessier hit the doldrums?

2. What did Moitessier fantasize about at Christmas?

3. What illusion did Moitessier have at the Cape of Good Hope?

4. What broke Moitessier's sextant?

5. What did Moitessier see when he first spied the town in Trinidad?

Short Essay Questions

1. What chore could Moitessier only perform in calm weather?

2. Describe Moitessier's voyage after rounding the Cape of Good Hope.

3. How did Moitessier make repairs to his boat after the accident?

4. What were conditions when Moitessier rounded the Cape of Good Hope?

5. Describe the harbor where Moitessier arrived in Trinidad.

6. What did Moitessier see when he arrived in Trinidad?

7. Describe the fish that followed Moitessier's boat.

8. What did Moitessier know about his competitors after rounding the Cape of Good Hope?

9. Describe Moitessier's interaction with a ship in Walker Bay, South Africa.

10. What was Moitessier looking for as he approached South Australia?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One of Moitessier's first important decisions was to decline to take a heavy transmitter but to convey messages in other ways. How important was communication to Moitessier, and how did its importance change over time? Were there occasions when he regretted leaving the transmitter and wished he had news, or was he comfortable being out of range for months at a time?

Essay Topic 2

Moitessier's tale of sailing solo is a story of self-reliance in the face of nature, which puts it in the same league as Thoreau's Walden and other books about going into nature alone. What does The Long Way tell us about the state of this narrative in the late 1960s. Is there any refuge where man can ultimately get away? What is the role of woman and society in the natural area where he finds his solitude? How is Moitessier positioned relative to this narrative of male self-reliance?

Essay Topic 3

Sailing is famously a rich man's sport. What was Moitessier's relationship with money and status? Was he hypocritical by sailing his own boat into Tahiti only to criticize wealthy developers and modern technology?

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This section contains 686 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample