Things They Carried

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Tomorrow: Full class discussion about The Things They Carried

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The Things They Carried Quiz 1

1. Which war is the subject of this book?

a) The Korean War
b) The First Gulf War
c) World War II
d) Vietnam

2. Who is the narrator of The Things They Carried?

a) Lieutenant Cross
b) Michael Herr
c) Kiowa
d) Tim O'Brien

3. The book is best described as

a) a collection of short stories
b) a novel
c) a memoir
d) a series of stories

4. The author's own term for the book's structure is

a) memoir
b) war fiction
c) novel
d) meta-fiction

5. The book is set in all of the following places except

a) Minnesota
b) Vietnam
c) Massachusetts
d) Canada

6. What does Jimmy Cross treasure most?

a. his gun
b. his slingshot
c. his bible
d. letters from a girl

7. Martha is

a. a nurse
b. an actress
c. a soldier
d. a student






8. In "The Things They Carried" why does Jimmy Cross feel guilty?

a. he doesn't miss Martha
b. he killed a Vietnamese boy
c. he let one of his men die
d. he cheated on Martha

a) 9. What was Ted Lavender doing when he died?

a. peeing
b. walking
c. hunting
d. scouting

10. According to Kiowa, what was the most remarkable thing about his death?

a. how little he was carrying
b. how slow it was
c. its speed and gravity
d. that he killed his killer, too


11. When Jimmy Cross visits the narrator in "Love," he says that he and Martha

a. never saw one another again
b. are married
c. met again but went their separate ways
d. are in love and are engaged

12. What did Martha give Jimmy Cross, twice?

a. a pebble
b. a picture of her playing sports
c. letters
d. a kiss

13. When he is still in love with Martha, Jimmy Cross is obsessed with her

a. poetry
b. virginity
c. university
d. knees

14. Where is "Love" set?

a. Vietnam
b. Cambodia
c. Massachusetts
d. Japan

15. In "Love," what does Cross ask O'Brien to do?

a. burn Kiowa's body
b. burn photographs of Martha
c. write about his love for Martha
d. write about him as if he was a hero

16. Who is Linda?

a. O'Brien's childhood sweetheart
b. the sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong
c. Jimmy Cross's sweetheart
d. a Japanese nurse

17. What did Linda die of?

a. consumption
b. a heart attack
c. she was shot in Vietnam
d. a brain tumor

18. All of the following are stories in the collection except

a. "How to Kill a Viet Cong"
b. "The Man I Killed"
c. "How to Tell a True War Story"
d. "Notes"

19. O'Brien felt all of the following while at war except

a. fear
b. boredom
c. shame
d. pride

20. In many of the stories, O'Brien is how old?

a. 16
b. 40
c. 43
d. 55


21. Where is he when O'Brien decides to go to Vietnam?

a) at home
b) at the meatpacking factory
c) in a boat on a river
d) in the car in Minnesota

22. Who does O'Brien say saved his life?

a) his father
b) Sam Smith, canadian
c) Elroy Berdahl, lodge owner
d) Tim O'Brien

23. What had O'Brien planned to do after college?

a) go to Canada
b) go to Yale
c) go to Harvard
d) go to Vietnam


24. Why is Lee Strunk afraid of Dave Jensen in "Friends"?

a) He is afraid he will maim him.
b) He is afraid he will kill him.
c) He's afraid his friend will steal his girlfriend.
d) He's afraid that he hurt his feelings.

25. What is the macho Curt Lemon afraid of?

a) the dentist
b) Mary Anne
c) the enemy
d) O'Brien