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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. In Chapter Four, how old was the volunteer who went with Marlantes to assess the platoon holding a key bridge?

2. When did the U.S. first bomb Libya?

3. When did Marlantes first write a recurring nightmare in his journal?

4. What emotion did Marlantes feel about the killing he did so many years ago?

5. When was the Viking poem written that Marlantes quoted in Chapter Four?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did Marlantes say about his spiritual condition in 1968?

2. Why was the 1970s therapy group that Marlantes attended a damaging experience?

3. What emotions did Marlantes feel when he had to kill?

4. When was the first time that Marlantes felt any emotion about having killed?

5. Whose death did Marlantes particularly remember?

6. Describe the team that Marlantes took when he went to access the position of his platoon that was holding a bridge.

7. Why did Marlantes say that war is the antithesis of a fundamental rule of moral conduct?

8. What did it take for Marlantes to realize that he had to quit fighting the shadows?

9. What did Marlantes lose after Vietnam and why?

10. Describe Marlantes' grandmother and how she treated her children.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the preface, Marlantes explained why he wrote "What it is Like to Go to War." Discuss why Marlantes wrote the book.

Essay Topic 2

In Chapter Ten, Marlantes discussed the "Club" of combat veterans. Discuss the Club, its purpose, and its positive and negative aspects.

Essay Topic 3

In Chapter Two, Marlantes discussed an incident in which the death of an NVA teen soldier was imprinted on his brain for many years. Discuss the incident, why it lingered in Marlantes' memory for so long, and how he dealt with the memory.

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