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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. Duno feels like a ________ in the mountains, but he knows he will never go back.

2. Pierino is given a gift, a ___________, from the milkman, Renzo.

3. What does Tomitz offer to give the rabbi and his family after telling them to leave town?

4. Who is the new assistant to the archbishop, as found out in the gossip between Rina and Lidia?

5. What does Schramm fall to the ground with after his confession?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is the person who arranged Schramm's escape? Why?

2. What does Tomitz come to tell those at the Rabbi's house?

3. What does Renzo speculate about the human beings in the world?

4. When Duno comes looking for Leto Girotti, what do Renzo and Osvaldo tell Duno to do?

5. Why did the bells at the church suddenly begin to ring?

6. What might it take to help Schramm heal from his tuberculosis?

7. What kind of mother was Klara Hitler to her son, Adolf Hitler?

8. What happened to Angelo Soncini's baby sister?

9. What do Hermann and Duno Brossler fight over that causes Duno to be slapped?

10. What is Doctor Werner Schramm looking for in the small village of Porto Sant' Andrea?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In today's world, the idea of resistance to a cause might be seen as terrorism instead of a partisan movement.

Part 1: Describe the actions of the resistance groups in this novel.

Part 2: Are the resistance groups effective in reaching their goals in this novel? Why or why not?

Part 3: Would you describe these resistance movements as terrorism? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

What's most interesting about this novel is the contradiction in beliefs and in the results of those beliefs. For example, Schramm is guilty of horrible things, but so is Renzo.

Part 1: What are Schramm's crimes within this novel and before the time of the novel?

Part 2: What are Renzo's crimes within this novel?

Part 3: How are these characters to be compared in terms of their guilt? Is one character more guiltier than the other? Why? Why not?

Essay Topic 3

Renzo is a fascinating character, always taking another side in the conflict, trying to remain away from the politics of the time.

Part 1: What are some of the roles Renzo plays within the conflict?

Part 2: Why doesn't Renzo take a side when it comes to the political arena?

Part 3: Does Renzo's noncommittal seem to be a good thing or a bad thing for others in the story? Why?

(see the answer keys)

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