1A. What Is Robert Proctor Doing When the Story Begins? Who Is with Him? What Does He Notice

“The Test”

1a. What is Robert Proctor doing when the story begins? Who is with him? What does he notice ahead of him on the road?

2a. What happens as he starts to pass the convertible? What sound does he hear throughout the following ordeal? What holds his attention while he is on the collision course with the other car?

3a. Who appears after Robert completes his application form? Why do they take him away?

1b. What kind of mood is Robert in at the beginning of the story? How does he feel about his ability to care for and handle a car?

2b. What is Robert's reaction to the crash? How does he feel when he learns it was not real?

3b. What do the two grooves on the floor indicate? What does the man mean when he says, "How do any of us know?"

4a. Identify the details that make the crash seem real to you. Are there details that make it seem unreal?

4b. Do you think Robert had questioned reality before? Do you think he will ever feel that he is in the "real" world again? Support your answers with details from the story.

5a. What do you think of the driving test that Robert was given? Do you think it is an accurate way to determine if somebody is fit to drive? Do you think the test serves other purposes? What do you think it says about the people who created it?

5b. In the Related Reading poem "Auto Wreck," Karl Shapiro also writes about an automobile accident. How are the onlookers in his poem different from Robert Proctor in "The Test"? How are they similar to each other?

6a. What mood is created in the beginning of the story? What details help to create this mood? When does the mood change? What new mood is created?

7a . Do you agree with the uniformed man's suggestion that all of life might be a kind of test? In what ways does life test people every day? In what ways do people pass or fail the tests that life presents to them?

1. Pretend that the accident in the story was real, not induced by hypnosis. Prepare a police/accident report with information on the whereabouts of the accident, the cars and drivers involved, the cause of the accident, the condition of the drivers and passengers, and any other pertinent information. Fill in gaps in the report with details from your own imagination.

2. As this story progresses, twists in the plot continue to distort what is real and what is not. Add another plot twist of your own. Maybe Robert will be taken to the psychiatric ward. Maybe, while there, he'll be hypnotized again. Maybe he'll wake up somewhere else. Try to think of some other possibilities. With what type of "reality" will your story end?

3. Write a short story about an everyday activity that takes place in the distant future. Think about how and why this activity might change. Use your own paper as necessary.