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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. Moments before waking up next to his late mother's corpse, Jack dreams about which parts of his body falling off?

2. Which member of the investigative team does a particular character want Jack to kill?

3. Ralph tells the investigative team that which character had sustained a cut while at the Heisman Memory Unit?

4. Which member of the Maitland household wakes the rest of the family with her screams on the night when Fred is preparing to commit suicide?

5. The person who wakes the rest of the Maitland family with her screams does NOT claim to have seen a man with what quality?

Short Essay Questions

1. What connection does June have to Fred's family tragedy?

2. What do the two words tattooed on Claude's hands symbolize?

3. What is the first sign Jack receives that makes him think his sunburn may be something else entirely?

4. What is King's reason for alluding to a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe?

5. In what way does The Outsider contain commentary about race and culture?

6. How does the motif of dreams enter the narrative in relation to Jack?

7. Who insists on joining the first meeting between Ralph and Holly and why?

8. How does Grace describe the man she sees in her bedroom?

9. What finally convinces Jack to do the bidding of the Outsider?

10. What comments does Claude make about Claude's overall personality?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss King’s messages about guilt and responsibility within The Outsider. Focus especially on events such as Ralph’s failure to force Terry to wear a bulletproof vest to his arraignment.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss King's decision to include humor within the text of The Outsider. What purpose did King have in mind when including these instances of humor and how does the inclusion of these instances support the overarching themes and messages of the text?

Essay Topic 3

Trace the characterization arc of Ralph’s character throughout the novel The Outsider. Discuss whether Ralph is a round or flat character and whether he is a static or dynamic character.

(see the answer keys)

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