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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 did Cheryl have her camp stove repaired in Chapter 6: “A Bull in Both Directions”?

2. The woman in Reno told Cheryl that "corvidology" is the study of what?

3. What year was it when Cheryl Strayed hiked the PCT?

4. What important item had Cheryl just lost over the edge of the mountain in the memoir's Prologue?

5. What is the title of the book that Cheryl brought on her hike to tell her how to use her compass?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are the "last-minute" items that Cheryl remembers to bring as she sets out in Chapter 3: “Hunching in a Remotely Upright Position”?

2. How does the author introduce herself and her mindset regarding her journey in the memoir's Prologue?

3. What obstacles are presented for Cheryl as she makes her way along the PCT in Chapter 9: “Staying Found”?

4. What causes Cheryl to leave the PCT in Chapter 5: “Tracks”? Where does she go when she departs from the trail?

5. Where is the author in the Prologue of the memoir? What action takes place in the Prologue?

6. What map does Cheryl describe in the beginning of Chapter 2: “Splitting”?

7. What internal and external conflicts are presented for Cheryl in Chapter 8: “Corvidology”?

8. Where does Cheryl's hike of the PCT begin? What thoughts does Cheryl have upon arriving at her starting point in Chapter 2: “Splitting”?

9. What items does Cheryl describe that she has brought for her journey in Chapter 3: “Hunching in a Remotely Upright Position”?

10. How does Cheryl describe her past relationship with Joe in Chapter 4: “The Pacific Crest Trail, Volume I: California”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the symbolism of the black feather Cheryl carried on her backpack in the narrative. Who gave Cheryl the feather? What did she come to learn it symbolized from a stranger in Reno? What did the feather represent to Cheryl?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Cheryl’s encounter with Frank, Walter, and Carlos in the reading. What were Frank, Walter, and Carlos doing when Cheryl found them? What fears did Cheryl face as she sat in Frank’s truck? Were these fears well-founded?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the genres of memoir and Bildungsroman. How does the term “Bildungsroman” relate to the narrative of Wild? How do literary devices such as theme, plot structure, imagery, metaphor, and symbolism apply to this genre? How do memoirs vary in terms of how they are related and how they are structured?

(see the answer keys)

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