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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. According to the narrator of "Section 1: Part 1", when did the gods leave?

2. What type of life does the narrator say he envisioned for himself as a child?

3. Where is the stone located, in "Section 1: Part 6", that the narrator is transported to?

4. What does the narrator say that he saw at the Grace picnic that troubled him?

5. In "Section 1: Part 5", what does the narrator say energizes him?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the narrator say he felt after meeting Avril?

2. What did the narrator see the first time he saw the Grace family?

3. What was the narrator's family life like before his father left?

4. In "Section 1: Part 5", how does the narrator describe Anna's father?

5. What does the narrator see when he looks in the mirror in "Section 1: Part 6"?

6. Why does the narrator consult a medical dictionary in "Section 1: Part 6"?

7. In "Section 1: Part 4", what does the narrator say about crying as a child?

8. What does the narrator say he and Claire argued about after visiting The Cedars together in "Section 1: Part 3"?

9. In "Section 1: Part 5", what does the narrator say about writing?

10. What is the narrator's life like at The Cedars?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How is "The Sea" a commentary on life and death?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the author's use of having the narrator narrate with long descriptive passages. What is the benefit of this style of story telling? What is the down side?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the use of shifting tenses in this novel. Is it effective? How or how not? Is it distracting? How or how not? Why might the author have the narrator tell his stories in this way?

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