View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the doctor advise Don Ygnacio to do with his daughter?

2. Whom does Don Ygnacio meet on his way back from visiting a man with rabies?

3. Who is raising Sierva?

4. Where does the next scene of chapter one take place?

5. Who is Judas Iscariote?

Short Essay Questions

1. What sort of man does Don Ygnacio appear to be in Chapter 1?

2. How does Ygnacio's first wife deal with her husband?

3. What does Dr. Abrenuncio believe about Sierva and her brush with rabies and what treatment does he recommend?

4. Describe Bernarda's relationship with Judas.

5. Describe Bernarda and Ygnacio's relationship with Sierva.

6. How does Sierva's relationship with her father improve in Chapter 2?

7. Why does Sierva prefer to live in the slave quarters instead of the mansion?

8. Why does Ygnacio's father object to his son marrying Dulce Olivia?

9. Describe Ygnacio as a youth.

10. How is rabies treated by the citizens of New Grenada from the first chapter?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Sierva asks her father if love can truly conquer all. His response is that, while it can, it would be best if she did not believe it. Citing specific examples from the text, discuss the statement within the overall context of this novel. How does this statement ring true for Sierva? How does it fail? Does it appear that she believes love can conquer all? In the end, does it? Provide thorough explanations for each statement.

Essay Topic 2

"[The Bishop] spoke of Yucatan, where they had constructed sumptuous cathedrals to hide the pagan pyramids, not realizing that the natives came to Mass because their sanctuaries still lived beneath the silver altars. He spoke of the chaotic mixing of blood that had gone on since the conquest: Spanish blood with Indian blood, and both of these with blacks of every sort, even Mandingo Muslims, and he asked himself whether such miscegenation had a place in the Kingdom of God."

Using this quote from the book as a springboard, discuss the story as an overall allegory for racism. Keep in mind the treatment of the slaves, Sierva's attachment to the African culture and her own racial background, and the use of the character of Sagunta and the motives of the Bishop in performing an exorcism on Sierva.

Essay Topic 3

Citing specific examples from the text, discuss the ironic twists within the characters of this novel, including the following:

- The slaves' acceptance and caring of Sierva.

- Dulce Olivia's feelings about Sierva's situation in the convent. Part

- The nuns' attempted thefts of Sierva's necklaces.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,046 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample