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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Joe first looks at his knee after his fall, how does he describe it?
(a) As "bloody stuffed".
(b) As a "zigzag".
(c) As "kinked".
(d) As "cockeyed".

2. When Joe knocks down a row of large icicles, he curses the pain of a...
(a) Cracked tooth.
(b) Broken heel.
(c) Shattered femur.
(d) Broken knee joint.

3. At the beginning of the chapter "On the Edge", on which side of Siula Grande are Joe and Simon descending?
(a) The North Face.
(b) The East Face.
(c) The South Face.
(d) The West Face.

4. How does the weather look when Joe and Simon start up Siula Grande?
(a) Foggy.
(b) Dreadful.
(c) Blustery.
(d) Perfect.

5. What collapses under Simon's feet?
(a) An ice bridge.
(b) The summit.
(c) A crevice.
(d) A snow ridge.

Short Answer Questions

1. A character in the book recounts an incident where one climber is dragged off a cliff while roped to his partner. What nationality are these climbers?

2. How long do Joe and Simon expect to be gone on their climb of Siula Grande?

3. As Simon lowers Joe down the mountain, how is Joe facing?

4. What does Joe mean by a "tortured" cornice?

5. What is a couloir?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens on The Bonatti Pillar on Les Petits Drus in the French Alps?

2. Why is Joe nervous about the first bivouac site?

3. When beginning his climb for the summit from the bivouac site 300 feet below the summit, what pros and cons does Joe mention about climbing in the daylight?

4. Why does Simon cut the rope?

5. After breaking his leg, why doesn't Joe ask Simon for help?

6. What occurs to Joe at the beginning of "On the Edge"?

7. On the eve of the summit conquest, what does Simon do that leaves Joe in disbelief?

8. At the beginning of "Tempting Fate", what does Joe say about his fingers, and how does he deal with them?

9. Describe Simon's feelings at the end of "The Final Choice".

10. After Joe tells Simon that he has broken his leg, he describes the pitiful look that Simon gives him as, 'a distance given to a wounded animal which could not be helped' (p74). From Simon's point of view, why does he give him this look?

(see the answer keys)

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