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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. Where was Paul a camp counselor 15 years prior to the time described in the Prologue?

2. In the Prologue, what did Paul's weight drop to when he began having chest pain?

3. Where did Paul live in Part 1, Section 1, when he finished high school?

4. Where did Paul's op-ed "How Long Have I Got Left" get published?

5. What type of tree was outside the office where Verghese met with Paul?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the intern's role when Paul began his residency in Part 1, Section 3?

2. How would Paul and his friends spends their afternoons in Arizona?

3. By the end of medical school, what did most students focus on for their specialties?

4. Why did Lucy, Paul's girlfriend in Part 1, Section 2, cry when she viewed an EKG while studying at Paul's apartment?

5. What two jobs did Paul apply for during his sophomore summer?

6. Who was Shep Nuland?

7. What happened to Paul's co-resident, Jeff?

8. How did Paul's father inspire him?

9. How did Paul feel when he made a trip to New York in the Prologue?

10. What were some of the things that Paul's mother did in order to see that her children were educated?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Paul commented that terminal illness should have been the perfect gift for someone who wanted to understand death. Why should his illness have been a gift for Paul, and why was it so difficult for him to understand and live through his diagnosis of a terminal illness?

Essay Topic 2

Paul went through the stages of grief "backward." How did Paul cope with each of the stages of grief and why did he consider that he went through the stages in reverse order?

Essay Topic 3

Lucy stated that Paul was fully alive even to his last day. In what ways was Paul fully alive throughout his illness? How were his days full of purpose and meaning even as he lost physical capabilities?

(see the answer keys)

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