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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. Why does Venters deteriorate significantly faster than Davie in Bad Blood?

2. What did Laura McEwan want to try with Spud when she took him home?

3. How does methadone affect Renton's cravings in Searching for the Inner Man?

4. What does Sick Boy do on the bus to London in Station to Station?

5. At the beginning of Courting Disaster, Renton and Spud have been arrested stealing what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What uncharacteristic moment occurs with Renton in Straight Dilemmas No. 1?

2. How does Renton feel about ripping off his mates at the end of the novel?

3. How does Kelly take revenge on some business men in Eating Out?

4. What surprise does Renton have when he wakes up in Gi's flat?

5. What does Renton find at Johnny Swan's in A Leg-Over Situation?

6. Describe Spud's ill-fated night with Laura McEwan.

7. Describe Sick Boy's escapade in Deid Dugs.

8. What does Dr. Forbes uncover about Renton's addiction in Searching for the Inner Man?

9. Why does Begbie become enraged in Trainspotting at Leith Central Station?

10. Why does Renton's father warn him in Bang to Rites?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the character of Tommy. To what extent is he the most sadly innocent of the central figures in Trainspotting? What are his drugs of choice at the beginning of the novel? What does he want from life, and how does this lead him to heroin? Discuss the extent to which Tommy' story is the most cautionary of those regarding the consequences of drug use.

Essay Topic 2

The characters of Trainspotting are deeply complex. They are capable of horrid actions and desirous of profound love and happiness. Write a three-part essay about three such characters. What hurtful or careless actions does each perpetrate? How does he or she show empathy or love through the novel? Does this person find happiness in the end?

Part 1) Kelly

Part 2) Davie

Part 3) Spud

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay on the subject of nonparticipation in modern life. To what extent are all of the characters in Trainspotting choosing not to participate in life? What are they distinctly trying to avoid? What pain and disappointment are they wary of? How have the major characters in the novel coped to avoid maintaining ties with each other and family and to avoid having jobs?

(see the answer keys)

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