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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. Which character is attacked by Doctor Dee in Chapter 8?

2. What method does Grady habitually utilize when he writes a novel?

3. When Grady enters his home in Chapter 15, he opens the closet and inhales a scent associated with which character?

4. In Chapter 7, it is revealed that Hannah lives in a rented room in whose home?

5. In Chapter 9, Grady drives James to a parking spot near what location?

Short Essay Questions

1. For what reason is Grady still in shock that Sara ever became involved with him?

2. What two roles does Walter play in Grady's life and why?

3. What were the circumstances of Grady's parents' deaths?

4. What does Grady mean when he repeatedly refers to the "midnight disease" (23) in the novel?

5. Though Grady cannot remember the night of his father's suicide, he remembers what other event vividly from around that time?

6. What is the significance of the date January 14, 1954 featured in Chapter 8?

7. What does Grady see as the main difficulty he is having with completing his fourth novel Wonder Boys?

8. Who is Q?

9. Who was the first "real writer" (3) Grady ever knew and what was his eventual fate?

10. In what way does the motif of dreams emerge in Chapter 3 and for what purpose does Chabon utilize the motif?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How is the topic of aging treated within the novel Wonder Boys? Create a claim stating Chabon’s message regarding the process of aging.

Essay Topic 2

What is Chabon's message regarding commitment within relationships in the novel Wonder Boys?

Essay Topic 3

Determine Chabon’s message regarding the relationship between comedy and tragedy, as depicted in the novel Wonder Boys.

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