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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. In the non-italicized section of Chapter 3, what is the sunken tug boat's bilge that is found after hauling the tug out of the water?

2. In the italicized section of Chapter 4, what does the kid say that nobody wants to talk about the speed of?

3. In the italicized section of Chapter 2, how does the Kid say that gets to the girl's room?

4. In the non-italicized section of Chapter 1, who supposedly found the downed plane in the first place?

5. In the non-italicized section of Chapter 2, what is the name of Bobby's lunch date's sister?

Short Essay Questions

1. At the beginning of Chapter 4, what appears in the night at the girl's window that makes her whisper Bobby's name?

2. Who does the hunter find on his walk through the woods?

3. What does Debussy say that she wants in regard to gender?

4. What are Bobby and Oiler doing off the coast of Mississippi as the non-italicized section of Chapter 1 opens?

5. Of the Kid's cohorts, who is the only one that the girl cares about? Why does the kid not summon her for the girl?

6. Who is the bathless one and what does he do?

7. What does Oiler say that he regrets the most about his time in Vietnam?

8. In Chapter 2, why does Bobby rent a boat and sail around the little cluster of islands off the coast of Mississippi?

9. After talking to Oiler about Venezuela, what does Bobby notice about his apartment?

10. What does Debussy go home to tell her mother about?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the Thalidomide Kid. Write about him as if you are explaining him and his character to someone who has not read the book. What are the Kid's important aspects? What are the important things to know about the Kid in order to understand his essence as it relates to the book?

Essay Topic 2

What role does the Kid play in the story? What does he represent for Alicia? What does he represent in regard to a discussion about reality as compared to things that are just outside of reality that require belief and a letting go of the tangibility of this physical world in order to understand them?

Essay Topic 3

Do you think that there is an actual missing passenger? What do you think the missing passenger represents? Can the missing passenger be a metaphor or a symbol that has multiple meanings?

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