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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. How does Harry feel as he leaves Sara after their visit?

2. Why do Harry and Tyrone split up on the streets?

3. What happens to Harry and Tyrone's drug business after much success?

4. Why does a nurse leave Sara alone for two days?

5. What is Sara's reaction to Harry's gift for her?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens at the McDick Corporation concerning Sara?

2. What characterizes Marion and Harry's relationship as their drug addictions continually worsen?

3. What does the reader find out about Lyle Russel during Sara's first phone call to the McDick Corporation?

4. When Marion meets with Arnold a second time, what do Marion's interactions with Arnold foreshadow?

5. What is Harry's internal conflict concerning Marion when they cannot find a drug connection?

6. What is the conflict at Marion's apartment when Harry and Tyrone return with drugs after scrounging on the street?

7. How severe is Sara's drug addiction as she continues her drug abuse?

8. What do Harry and Marion's lives consist of as the year comes to a close?

9. What does Brody's death foreshadow?

10. How does Sara's situation in the hospital elicit sympathy from readers?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the literary effect of the story zigzagging between Harry and Sara's drug dependencies and downfalls?

Essay Topic 2

What is the role of doctors in the novel? Consider all characters who interact with doctors. Is the author making a criticism about the medical field?

Essay Topic 3

What is the most violent scene from the novel? How does this scene add to the overall meaning?

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This section contains 812 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample