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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. Why is Le Amis Des Vieux Maitres closed down?

2. Where do the Ellenborgens live?

3. Who is Lissberg?

4. Where does Lee think the Ellenbogens go after the party?

5. Why does Arthur want to move?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Sandra so worried about Lionel when he runs away in Down at the Dinghy?

2. Why does the tea room likely suit the narrator as a place to spend his last few hours in the town rather than the Red Cross recreation room?

3. What happens to the narrator after he leaves the training course?

4. Why does Lionel run away so often?

5. Why does Arthur call Lee in the first place of Pretty Mouth and Green my Eyes?

6. Why does Lionel cry when he throws the key chain overboard?

7. Why does Esme's long and complicated letter soothe the narrator more than one from his family?

8. Why does Arthur want to move to Connecticut?

9. Why is the narrator so taken with Sister Irma?

10. Why does Sister Irma withdraw from classes at the art school?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast Lionel and Teddy. What does each character have in common? What makes them different? Analyze their challenges with family, beliefs and events.

Essay Topic 2

In For Esme - With Love and Squalor, a young girl becomes a powerful leader in recovery for the narrator. Why is Esme able to be so helpful to a solider that is so adversely affected by the war? What simple acts help him most? Why isn't his family able to help as much as Esme? How does a 13-year-old that he meets one time leave such a lasting impression?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss irony as a theme throughout the Nine Stories collection. How is it used to create suspense, power and other emotions that are meant to draw the reader into the stories?

(see the answer keys)

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