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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. On July 17, what kind of decision does Petrocelli say Steve has made?

2. What is the mood of Steve's parents when they come to visit him on Sunday, July 12th?

3. What, according to Bobo, is a "heavy and a half"?

4. What does Steve's mother do when the verdict is read?

5. What is the bad trick O'Brien says Petrocelli is using during the note of Friday, July 10th?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do readers know what Steve's verdict is, based on the screenplay?

2. Who owns thel gun used in the crime, and is it a legal gun?

3. Why is Ms. Moore not at work the day King came to see her?

4. What does Steve realize about why there are so many fights in prison after church on Sunday, July 12?

5. Why was Lorelle Henry in the pharmacy?

6. What does O'Brien say she is going to do on the weekend of the 11th?

7. What is Briggs' objection to what Bobo is wearing when he testifies?

8. What does Henry mean in the pretrial questioning when she says she is having trouble testifying that King was involved in the crime?

9. What does O'Brien say about Petrocelli's bringing the crime scene photos out again just before the long weekend recess?

10. How does the medical examiner say Mr. Nesbitt died?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Life in prison is a big adjustment for Steve, and has a major impact on the way he feels about himself. Describe the details of prison life that most affect Steve, including specific examples from the text. You should include information and analysis on how prison changes Steve and/or does not change him.

Essay Topic 2

This story relies not only on journal entries, but also on scenes from a screenplay to establish plot, setting, characterization, action, and other fictional elements. Write an analytical essay explaining how Walter Dean Myers establishes Steve's point-of-view in these screenplay scenes. In addition, be sure to include detailed analyses of how this specific point-of-view effectively communicates fictional elements including, but not limited to plot, setting, or characterization.

Essay Topic 3

The narrative style of this novel is rather unique. Write an analytical essay that describes and analyzes the particular method Walter Dean Myers uses in Steve's journal entries to establish and communicate this point-of-view. In addition, what are the narrative benefits of such a point-of-view? How do these journal entries most effectively tell those parts of the story?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 922 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample