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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. After Sal leaves Terry, he rides a bus from Los Angeles to which city?

2. Who sends letters to Sal and tells him about Dean Moriarty?

3. Who is Galatea?

4. What does Old Bull Lee warn Sal about?

5. What is the vow that Sal and Terry make?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Sal confess to Dean while traveling from New Jersey to Virginia?

2. Why do Sal and Terry go to Terry's home town of Sabinal?

3. Why does Dean Moriarty visit Sal at his aunt's house in Patterson, New Jersey?

4. What favor does Remi ask Lee Ann before he moves out of their house?

5. What does Sal's aunt do when Dean is given a speeding ticket?

6. What is the vow Sal and Terry make when Sal leaves for New York?

7. What job does Remi Boncoeur find for, Sal when he arrives in San Francisco?

8. How does Sal react after he introduces Dean Moriarty to Carlo Marx?

9. What does Sal learn about Dean's love life in Denver?

10. Why do Sal and his hitchhiker friend, Eddie, part in Iowa?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In American culture, starting as early as the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the California Gold Rush, California is viewed as the land of hope and promise.

a. Explain how California is viewed by Okies and Mexican immigrants in On the Road.

b. Explain how it is viewed by Sal Paradise.

Essay Topic 2

Dean Moriarty is a criminal who is at times wild and erratic, and who sometimes abandons wives and friends at his convenience.

a. Why are so many people attracted to him?

b. What qualities does Dean Moriarty have that makes Sal see him as a "holy saint"?

c. Are these qualities central to what it means to be "beat"?

Cite specific examples from the book to support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

Jazz music is an underlying theme in On the Road.

a. Describe the role of jazz in the Beat movement.

b. Describe how jazz influences how On the Road was written.

(see the answer keys)

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