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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. Where did Jack Kerouac attend college?

2. When did Allen Ginsberg begin attending Columbia University?

3. In what year did Neal Cassady die?

4. What word does Michael McClure frequently play with in "Peyote Poem"?

5. Herbert Huncke introduced William S. Burroughs to _____________.

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is Micheal McClure? Describe his "Peyote Poem."

2. What does Kerouac's letter to Neal Cassady reveal about their friendship?

3. Describe Kerouac's depiction of the jazz band in the excerpt from "On the Road." To whom are they compared ?

4. What biographical facts are mixed up in Kerouac's "On the Road"? What details are omitted?

5. What are some examples of religious allusion in "Howl"? What do they represent?

6. How do Cassady and Kerouac differ on their perspective of Cassady's childhood?

7. Describe the exposition from the beginning excerpt of "On the Road." Who are the characters introduced?

8. What is Ginsberg's subject in "A Supermarket in America"?

9. What does Ann Charters write about Carl Solomon in his biographical information? What is his work about?

10. Describe William S. Burroughs' excerpt from "Junky." What is significant about this subject?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the novel On the Road and its importance to the Beat Generation's philosophies and ideologies. What are the fictionalized names about and "who is who"?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the singer/songwriter Bob Dylan and his works in the anthology. What influences of the Beat Generation can be seen in Dylan's writing?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss and describe the world events which directly or indirectly instigated the Beat Generation. How do the members of the Beat Generation view mainstream society? Why?

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