The Things They Carried TEST FORM A
EC III – Osika. 40 Points
YOU MAY WRITE ON THIS TEST
Character Matching: Match the following characters with the description that fits them the best.
Characters
1. Jimmy Cross
2. Henry Dobbins
3. Tim O’Brien
4. Rat Kiley
5. Dave Jensen
6. Norman Bowker
7. Kiowa
8. Curt Lemon
9. Ted Lavender
10. Mitchell Sanders
11. Mary Anne Bell
12. Martha
13. Linda
14. Elroy Berdahl
Description
a. Medic of the group, carries comic books
b. Plays catch with smoke grenades with Rat
Kiley
c. Played volleyball, trained nurse
d. Lieutenant of the platoon
e. Always believed there was a “moral” in
situations
Ab. Dies of a brain tumor
Ac. Blows away a puppy with explosives
Ad. Owner of the Tip Top Lodge
Ae. Devout Baptist that carries a New
Testament
Bc. Always carries girlfriend’s pantyhose
Bd. Almost chooses to swim to Canada to
escape the war
Be. Hangs himself at the Y
Cd. Wears a necklace made of tongues
Ce. Makes a pact with Lee Strunk to “end”
the guy who gets badly wounded
De. Always scared, carries premium dope
15. Azar
True/False: Read the following statements. If it is true, make A. If the statement is false, mark B.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
Jimmy Cross believes Curt Lemon’s death was because he was thinking too much about Martha.
Rat Kiley makes up the rhyme for the old poppa-san who guides them through the mine field.
Kiowa continually says “Boom. Down.” when referencing Ted Lavender’s death.
Mitchell Sanders feels guilty about Kiowa’s death because he almost pulled him out of the
“waste” before he died.
Martha gives Jimmy Cross a second picture after he burns the first one.
Mary Anne Bell was dating Rat Kiley before coming to Vietnam.
Norman Bowker writes a letter to Tim O’Brien telling him his thoughts about Tim’s writing.
Curt Lemon gets worried about his tooth and has the dentist pull it out.
Tim O’Brien laughs as he scares Bobby Jorgenson with the flares and cans.
Tim O’Brien admits to his daughter that he has killed someone in the beginning of the chapter,
“Ambush.”
Multiple Choice Questions: Choose the letter that best answers the question.
26. Kiowa’s death can be described as which of the following?
a. Beautiful
c. Selfless
b. Ironic
d. Brave
27. Which of the following characters tells the story of Mary Anne Belle to the platoon?
a. Mitchell Sanders
c. Rat Kiley
b. Mark Fossie
d. Jimmy Cross
28. Henry Dobbins is compared to what in the beginning of the chapter, “Stockings?”
a. A tank
c. America
b. Underwear
d. A sniper rifle
29. Where did Tim O’Brien spend his summer in 1968 before going to war?
a. Meat packing plant
c. Driving around the town’s lake
b. Studying at Harvard
d. Touching Martha’s knee
30. What does Henry Dobbins and Azar see in the burned village?
a. A man with a star-shaped scar
c. A river
b. A dancing girl
d. A lemon tree
31. Why did Tim bring Kathleen to Vietnam?
a. She went to college there
c. His wife forced him
b. They were dating
d. It was for her birthday
32. What is strange about O’Brien’s description of the man he kills?
a. He dies in a “waste” field
c. Tim knew the man from college
b. Tim gives the man a back story
d. The man was pregnant
33. How did the soldiers refer to the enemy?
a. Ghosts
c. Goats
b. Babies
d. Crows
34. Which of the following characters carried extra rations because he was a “big man?”
a. Dave Jensen
c. Bobby Jorgenson
b. Azar
d. Henry Dobbins
35. Who was Tim’s first love when he was 9-years-old?
a. Martha
c. Linda
b. Mary Anne
d. Kathleen
TEAR THIS PAGE OFF THE REST OF THE TEST. YOU WILL WRITE
DIRECTLY ON THIS SHEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Quote Analysis and Identification: Choose ONE of the following quotes and please explain the
significance of the. Circle the number of the quote you will respond to then respond to it below. Make
sure to answer each of the parts that have been bolded, underlined, and italicized in the directions. Be
sure to include who is speaking as well what this quotation means for the entire text – what theme it
may represent and why, and what is happening in the novel at the time. YOU MUST USE AT LEAST 4
SENTENCES TO RECEIVE ALL 5 POINTS!
1. “What happened to her was what happened to all of them. You come over here clean and you
get dirty and then afterward it’s never the same. A question of degree.”
2. “For years I’d felt a certain smugness about how easily I had made the shift from war to peace. A
nice smooth glide—no flashbacks or midnight sweats. The war was over, after all. And the thing
to do was go on. So I took pride in sliding gracefully from Vietnam to graduate school, from Chu
Lai to Harvard, from one world to another.”
3. “You’re in a place where you don’t belong. You just don’t know. You hide in this little fortress,
behind wire and sandbags, and you don’t know…sometimes I want to eat this place. I just want
to swallow it and have it there inside me.”