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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. Who comes to find John in Chapter 3?

2. What teams are playing the football game that John is watching in Chapter 3?

3. Where was Tom Gordon's bullet wound that killed him?

4. What music group is John listening to at the beginning of the novel?

5. What item does John notice is missing from the Gordon boat in Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What rule does John have for himself about getting involved in a case?

2. What is Dr. Zollner's theory concerning the Gordons' deaths in Chapter 11?

3. What problem does John Corey see with doing nothing and boredom?

4. What reasons does John come up with, when contemplating Gordon continuing the case in Chapter 6?

5. What is interesting to John and Beth about the type of weapons Stevens and his security forces carry on Plum Island?

6. How does Dr. Chen explain her job to John?

7. Who is Kenneth Gibbs and what does he look like?

8. Why does John think that the person Detective Penrose is going to meet in Chapter 3 is really from the FBI or CIA rather than the Department of Agriculture?

9. Why doesn't John answer the questions from George Foster about his relationship with the Gordons in Chapter 4?

10. Describe the Gordons' book collection that John finds in their home.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The theme of the pursuit of power is central to the novel, Plum Island. Many important characters are pursuing power through wealth, position, and through knowledge. Discuss how DeMille's view on the pursuit of power is relevant to human nature and seen in society today.

Essay Topic 2

A recurrent theme in Plum Island is that of deception. Compare and contrast at least two appearances of this theme and how it portrayed through specific characters in the novel.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the dramatic structure of Plum Island. Use textual evidence to designate the expository, rising action, the climax, falling action and the denouement.

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