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 Eddie refer to his mother and aunt as in Chapter 3?

2. Most of the residents of Eddie’s neighborhood are descended from what heritage?

3. What is the name of Eddie’s aunt who brings him tortillas every day in Chapter 1?

4. What does Eddie leave at Mr. Stiles’s residence when he does not return in Chapter 2?

5. Eddie’s mother and aunt try to convince Eddie to date a local girl who is a good catch to them because she has only one what in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. What leads to Eddie’s encounter with the police in Chapter 3?

2. What do Eddie and José find when they stop to pick up onions after eating in Chapter 4?

3. Who calls Eddie at the end of Chapter 3? Why?

4. Who does Eddie believe will have brighter futures as described in Chapter 1? Why?

5. How is Eddie’s neighborhood described in Chapter 1?

6. What is Angel’s objective with Eddie in Chapter 1?

7. What does Eddie’s aunt bring him daily in Chapter 1? Why?

8. Where does Eddie work in Chapter 1? How is this neighborhood described?

9. What causes Eddie’s sense of fear in Chapter 1?

10. What background information does the author establish regarding Eddie’s past and the people he has lost in Chapter 1?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the objectives and actions of Eddie in the novel. What does Eddie want as a character? What actions does he take in order to gain those objectives? Is Eddie successful in achieving his objectives? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the role of the military in the novel. What does joining the military mean for José? How does Eddie view the military and José’s stories of training? How do Eddie’s feelings about the military evolve in the course of the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the motif of onions in Buried Onions. When are they first mentioned by the narrator? How do onions play into the description of the setting in the barrio? What is represented by the onion seller in the novel?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 788 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample