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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. What is Dympna's main concern with the way that Hector and Paudi want to deal with Fannigan?

2. What is the description of Doran's "inexpertly folded tie" intended to accomplish (189)?

3. On their visit to Fannigan's house, what does Arm decide Fannigan's outfit is meant to do?

4. What is the most accurate characterization of Rebecca's comments about Brandon's band and Glanbeigh?

5. Why does the "Diamonds" narrator feed the stray cats at Saint Carmichael's?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are Arm and Dympna doing in the opening of "Calm With Horses"?

2. What is Rebecca's opinion of Arm after their conversation at Quillinan's?

3. What is Arm's attitude toward his son?

4. Who is Mellick, and what story does he tell at AA meetings?

5. What can be inferred about how Maryanne died, and what evidence is there to support this inference?

6. In the years since their band broke up, how have Eli and Doran's lives differed?

7. What does Arm believe is his parents' only real flaw, and why does he think they have this flaw?

8. What happens when Arm goes back to the horse farm for a second time?

9. Why does Arm's son not live with him?

10. When Arm runs into Fannigan on his walk on the night that Brandon's band plays at Quillinan's, what does Arm do to Fannigan?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In interviews, Colin Barrett has said that it is important to him to portray his small-town characters as fully realized, complex human beings just as characters from more cosmopolitan backgrounds are generally portrayed. Has he succeeded? Write an essay that evaluates the anthology's depiction of small-town characters against this standard. Use evidence from at least four of the stories to support your claims.

Essay Topic 2

What is the purpose of including an autistic character in "Calm With Horses"? What do the characters' reactions to Jack reveal about life in rural Ireland? What do the characters' reactions to Jack reveal about the characters themselves? Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about the purpose of including Jack's character in "Calm With Horses."

Essay Topic 3

In "The Moon," Martina seems scornful toward the town where she was raised and the people who have chosen to remain there. This sentiment is expressed by "leavers" and outsiders in several stories in Young Skins. Do the stories offer any counterclaims from the perspectives of the small-town inhabitants, or do the stories leave this perspective unchallenged? Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about what the stories seem to be saying about the value of staying in an environment like Glanbeigh. Use evidence from "The Moon" and at least two other stories to support your ideas.

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This section contains 1,032 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample