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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 did Jesus tell the hare-lipped girl she would do?

2. Who greets Barabbas and the girl as they walk down the streets of Jerusalem?

3. What do the believers begin to call Barabbas after he returns from his visit to the village on the mountain?

4. When the book opens, where is Barabbas standing?

5. Where was Barabbas when the man on the cross was arrested?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the hare-lipped girl.

2. Describe the man that Barabbas meets who was resurrected from the dead.

3. To what do the characters at the fat woman's house attribute the halo Barabbas describes seeing?

4. Why doesn't Barabbas believe that Jesus could be the Son of God?

5. Why does Barabbas feel he has a stronger bond with Jesus than the Christians?

6. Why is Barabbas pleased that he did not see the resurrection?

7. What do Barabbas and the characters at the fat woman's house discuss?

8. What does Barabbas give the hare-lipped girl at the fat woman's house?

9. What does the red-bearded man claim is the point of the crucifixion?

10. What does the red-bearded man confess to Barabbas?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Sahak's attitude affect his character and other characters in the novel? What events and experiences appear to affect Sahak's attitude? What role does Sahak play in Barabbas's life and how does absence affect Barabbas's character?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the concept of ritual "uncleanliness." How does ritual uncleanliness differ from simply being dirty and needing a bath? What does the fear of ritual uncleanliness indicate about Barabbas's character? What irony is evident in this?

Essay Topic 3

Other than death, what purpose did crucifixion serve in the first century? How did it affect members of society? What effect did it have on the characters in the novel? What link might be evident among all the crucifixions reported in the novel?

(see the answer keys)

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