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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. What kind of service did the Irish priest who married Lynch say he wanted?

2. To which Irish country did Robin Robertson go on a residency program?

3. In what state did Nugent teach in college when he met his wife?

4. In what town's hospital was Nora treated?

5. To what state was Lynch flying when he first thought of a golfatorium?

Short Essay Questions

1. Of all the choices offered by Lynch to explain Stephanie's death, which one seemed to be the one he would choose?

2. Why was Lynch's father fond of quoting Gladstone?

3. Why did Lynch say some cultural groups (immigrant Irish, Diaspora Jews, African-Americans) actually"enjoy" funerals?

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

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

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

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

8. What did Lynch mean when he stated that "one hand washes the other" in Chapter 1?

9. What was Nora's reaction to her impending death?

10. According to Lynch, why do people find it important to have bodies to bury?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the first chapter, Lynch repeatedly states that "the dead don't care" and that only the living care what happens to the body. Why are the dead valuable to the living? Why do the living feel the need to have ceremonies and other ways to recognize someone who no longer cares? In what ways are funeral services really for the living? Would it really matter what we do with the dead?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the artichoke poem described in Chapter 5. How did the poet use sexual imagery in describing the vegetable? Why did he choose to describe an artichoke instead of a woman? Why did so many people respond to the poem in the way the author clearly intended? Is there some unspoken connection between food and sex?

Essay Topic 3

Lynch quotes Gladstone as stating that he could tell how a people respected the laws of the land by how they treated their dead. Do you agree with this? What does the way in which society treats its dead say about that society? Does it go beyond simply obeying laws? How does a society's way of "caring" for the dead reflect its attitude toward life? How do you think modern American society treats its dead and how does this reflect our overall society?

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