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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. About how many people are traveling in the trailer when the truck breaks down in "When We Arrive"?

2. When does the narrator say that Napoleon's troops suffered a defeat against Mexican soldiers in "Under the House"?

3. How long does it take the portrait maker to produce Don Mateo's portrait once he is cornered at the market?

4. Dona Chona says of her children in "The Little Burnt Victims" that the older they get the more what they become?

5. What does the protagonist ask his mother to iron for him in "First Communion"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is the protagonist under the house in "Under the House"?

2. How is the information relayed to the reader largely in "The Night the Lights Went Out"? Why do you think the author chooses this narrative style?

3. What has Dona Maria always told her children about Santa Clause in "The Night Before Christmas"?

4. What does the narrator observe at the cleaners in "First Communion"?

5. Why does one of the workers hope to get a job in Minneapolis in "When We Arrive"?

6. How are Don Efrain and Dona Chona described in "The Little Burnt Victims"?

7. How does the fire start in "The Little Burnt Victims"?

8. Who buys a portrait in "The Portrait"? Who is the portrait of?

9. How is the narrative of "Under the House" related? Why do you think the author chooses this narrative style?

10. What does the narrator do after fleeing from his home in "First Communion"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why is the father obsessed with boxing in "The Little Burnt Victims"? What symbolism is associated with this obsession in the story? What becomes of the Garcia family?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the language style of And the Earth Did Not Devour Him. What are examples of idioms or localized accents that are demonstrated in the novel? How does the characters' dialogue differ from the main text?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the characters of Don Laito and Dona Bone in "Hand in His Pocket." How are these characters perceived by the community? What observations does the narrator make about these characters? Would you consider these characters protagonists or antagonists? Why?

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