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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. What is the weather like when Simon begins to descend the mountain alone?
(a) Calm, silent, sunny, and warm.
(b) Scorching.
(c) High winds with 20-below-zero wind chills.
(d) A complete whiteout.

2. When Richard returns to base camp, he informs Simon that Spinoza will arrive with the donkeys when?
(a) Within the week.
(b) After the girls are done making their cheese.
(c) Within two hours.
(d) At six o'clock tomorrow morning.

3. After he emerges from the crevasse, what obstacle next lies in his path?
(a) The glacier.
(b) Bomb Alley.
(c) Another crevasse.
(d) The lake.

4. To what does Joe compare the figures in the ice?
(a) Carvings inside a Hindu Temple.
(b) Answers #1, #2, and #3.
(c) Paintings by Titian of grossly fat nudes.
(d) A Renaissance painting in the Sistine Chapel.

5. While crawling through the crevasse section of the glacier, what does Joe frequently do?
(a) He stands up to check the progress of his route.
(b) He bleats out obscenities.
(c) He vomits.
(d) He digs bucket seats.

Short Answer Questions

1. What becomes Joe's obsession in the moraines?

2. What does Joe do to find out if Simon has fallen to his death?

3. What does Simon believe causes the loss of Joe?

4. When reaching the "floor" of the crevasse, Joe determines his depth to be...

5. After seeing that the rope had been cut, Joe falls asleep. What wakes him?

Short Essay Questions

1. The morning after arriving back at base camp, Simon revisits his feelings about the place while urinating on a boulder. How does he describe these emotions?

2. When does the "voice" utter its first words of discouragement? What does it tell Joe?

3. What does Joe discover upon reaching the "bottom" of the crevasse?

4. Why is Joe so worried about losing Simon's tracks?

5. While abseiling to the right of the wall over which Joe had tumbled, why does Simon suddenly stop his descent?

6. Joe tells of the most difficult thing he has ever done, and the best view he has ever seen. What are these?

7. While preparing for his escape attempt up the snow cone towards the light, how does Joe's view towards the crevasse briefly change?

8. Describe Joe's one article of clothing that Simon can't bring himself to burn.

9. What logic does Joe use to assume that Simon believes he is dead?

10. In the moraines, what device plays a crucial role in Joe's survival?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 989 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample