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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. What does Isma reveal to Renzo, even though it seems she would not say anything to anyone?

2. What is Santino Cicala helping Battista Goletta build?

3. Battista threatens _______ that he must tell the Germans who killed the five soldiers or he will tell them about his own Communist cousins.

4. Who has been promoted within the SS Walther Reinhardt Division?

5. Santino tells Leto that the wall's strength comes from the _________ as well as from what you see.

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Maria Avoni teach Simon Henley about as she takes him to his first camp?

2. What does Renzo do once he realizes he has no one to live for now that the war is over?

3. What was the real story behind the raping of the girl by the six German soldiers?

4. Who is Osvaldo now driving a car for?

5. Why does Duno know how to care for the injured?

6. What are Renzo and Schramm supervising together?

7. What has happened to Alberto Fiori, formerly Albery Blum?

8. What does Battista threaten Leto with when he tells him to tell the Germans who killed the five soliders?

9. What has little Angelo Soncini realized about his position at the boarding school?

10. What is the holiday that the United States and the Germans had hoped to meet in terms of ending the war?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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 2

The title of the story is from the quote: "No matter how dark the tapestry God weaves for us, there's always a thread of grace." This seems to be the perfect way to assemble the images and the emotions of the story.

Part 1: In what ways does the story show that the tapestry God weaves is dark?

Part 2: What are some examples of grace in this story?

Part 3: In what ways has your perception of grace changed in reading this story?

Essay Topic 3

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?

(see the answer keys)

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