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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. According to Maria, what was "something no one in the city liked to be near"?

2. What time is it essential for Maria to embark on her new pastime?

3. Why does Maria dislike the first picture that Carter made with her?

4. When Maria visits Kate at the hospital and warns the nurse about Kate's nightmares, what does Maria realize about getting an abortion?

5. What is the name of the second picture Carter made with Maria?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Carter tell Maria tell Kate that it is not good for her to visit Kate unannounced and what does it reveal about Kate's treatment?

2. What does Maria do when she arrives in Baker, the location where Carter is shooting, and what does it represent?

3. What is the coral snake Maria thinks about as the novel opens a metaphor of?

4. Who is Benny Austin and what does he represent in the novel?

5. Where did Maria grow up and why is it significant?

6. What are the two films Maria has starred in that Carter has made and how does she feel about them?

7. Where does Maria begin to sleep after her breakup with Carter and why is it significant?

8. When Maria asks if Carter and she are separated when he returns home, how does he respond and why is it significant?

9. What time does Maria want to be on the freeway and why is it significant?

10. What is the tone of Helene's recollections of Maria and why is it significant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the use of language in the novel. What is the purpose of profanity and colloquial language? What is the function of dialogue?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss symbolism in the novel. Compare and contrast highways and plumbing as symbols in the novel.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss mental illness as a theme in the novel.

1. How is treatment of mental illness represented in the novel?

2. What is Maria's familial history with mental illness?

(see the answer keys)

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