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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 is Del Nearing?

2. Which of the following is a spook-like practice that Rowser takes in his daily life?

3. What simple fact of commonality gives Owen comfort in Chapter 2?

4. What country is David Keller going to be air-dropped into in Chapter 5?

5. What location is Owen visiting when he meets the two strange men in the tomb caves?

Short Essay Questions

1. What story does Owen tell about a cave in Chapter 2?

2. What conversation do Eliades and James have at dinner in Chapter 3?

3. What plan does Volterra have for his life after film?

4. How is Owen's connection to the cave people addressed in Chapter 4?

5. What does James Axton do in Europe?

6. How did James Axton begin working at Northeast Group?

7. Why is Volterra in Jordan in Chapter 6?

8. How has Kathryn Axton changes since separating from James?

9. How do Kathryn and James discuss their relationship in Chapter 2?

10. Describe the awkward lunch at the beginning of Chapter 7.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the Language Cult and how it becomes a symbol in the novel. To what extent does the language cult exist outside of time and place? In what ways is it stateless and oddly innocent? In discussing the otherworldliness of the cult, determine what it represents to the people who search it out. What do these lost Americans long to find at the end of the search for the cult? To what extent does the cult represent a pre-American world?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay about the relationship between James and Tap Axton. What do father and son do together throughout the novel, and how does the impending divorce affect this activity? What habits does Tap have that alienate him from James? Discuss whether DeLillo paints a picture of a father and son relationship that seems strong in any way. What other character seems more like a father figure to Tap?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about the ensemble that is James Axton's expatriate social scene. What collective philosophy do these people share, and for whence does this philosophy derive? In this essay, discuss the dynamic that exists within the group. Who are the most dominant figures in the group dynamic, and who feels like an outsider? Which couples are strong and which are clearly foundering? How is this made apparent?

(see the answer keys)

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