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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. For how long was Lynch on the island?

2. What disease did Lynch's father have outbreaks of?

3. To what state did the Nugents move after marrying?

4. How did Milo die?

5. In which state did the accident occur?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Lynch try to maintain some of the old traditions after he fixed up the Irish cottage when Nora passed away?

2. How does society generally view cemeteries, according to Lynch?

3. If the dead don't care, why did Lynch get up in the middle of the night to tend to the newly deceased?

4. Why did the Lynch brothers take care of their father's body rather than allow a local undertaker to do the job?

5. What are the dangers of viewing the dead as an "embarrassment?"

6. When and why did the regular practice of embalming begin?

7. How did the modern amenities (toilet, television, etc.) change life in the old Irish cottage?

8. What did Lynch consider the mark of a good faith leader?

9. How did Lynch's mother and father differ in their reactions to the normal "threats" of childhood?

10. How does Lynch view the work done by his colleague Wesley Rice with the young, murdered girl?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the assisted suicide doctor, Jack Kevorkian. Why were so many people willing to allow him to "assist" them in killing themselves? How does Lynch view the notion of providing someone with assistance in suicide? How did the general public react to Kevorkian and why was he not convicted? Is there an absolute value of life or can society reach an agreement about when people may choose to end theirs?

Essay Topic 2

In discussing the divorce of his friend, Henry Nugent, Lynch said divorced men in our society are seen as damaged goods. What did he mean by that? In what ways was the divorce easier on Nugent's ex-wife? How does divorce affect the father's relationship with the children? How did Lynch's divorce differ from many other American divorces?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the significance of Wesley Rice's work on the young girl who had been brutally murdered. How important was it that this work be done? Why did the mother insist on seeing her daughter one last time? How did Rice's "repair" work give the girl's body back to her family? Is the work done on corpses "barbaric," as Jessica Mitford claimed, or a kindness, as Lynch saw it? What kind of person does it take to do this kind of work?

(see the answer keys)

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