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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. The Herman Talmadge Memorial Bridge "_____" Bryson into South Carolina.

2. As a child, what did Bryson always think about Pella?

3. After being the only white man in a restaurant in Alabama, Bryson feels _____ to get back on the highway.

4. Why has Bryson never seen the "Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum"?

5. What part of Kentucky did Bryson pass through?

Short Essay Questions

1. What effect does Bryson's visit to Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum have on him?

2. How does Auburn, AL prompt more of Bryson's criticisms of youth?

3. Why is the south like a foreign country to Bryson?

4. What was the effect of Bryson's "disturbed and erratic" childhood?

5. Why does Bryson like Tupelo?

6. Why was Abe Lincoln's home more fun for Bryson and his generation that it is for the youth of today?

7. Does Bryson have a conflicted relationship with North Carolina? What constitutes this relationship?

8. Why does Bryson draw ties to movies? How does this aid the narrative?

9. How does Bryson generalize towns from his youth?

10. What inspired Bryson's trip?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Bryson expressed his objective of returning to the land of his youth at the beginning of the book. Discuss Bryson's successes or failures in his objective.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the effect of Bryson's extreme and definitive points of view on his writing and our experience of Bryson and America.

Essay Topic 3

A majority of Bryson's trip is centered around sightseeing. Discuss tourism as a tool in Bryson's journey of discovering America and self-discovery.

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