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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 Pocha's new friend do for Pocha and herself?

2. How long does it take Pantoja, Caiguas and Rioalto to clean and organize their new work site?

3. What is the name of the club where Pocha and her friend see Pantoja out with shady people?

4. Rioalto and Caiguas are noted as having a certain indifference toward what type of people?

5. What do people begin carrying around with them after someone is sacrificed?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Pocha say in a letter to her sister Chichi in Chapter 3?

2. Why is Pantoja happy at the beginning of Chapter 5?

3. What is the issue that Pantoja is being sent to the small city of Iquitos to handle?

4. Why is Captain Pantoja being relocated in Chapter 1?

5. On what conditions is the Special Service allowed to use a Navy boat?

6. Why are people in Moronacocha heralding a young boy as a martyr?

7. Why does Pantoja begin receiving complaints from military posts?

8. What is the success level of the Special Service's pilot mission?

9. Why are Pantoja's coworkers concerned about him spending time with a woman named Olga?

10. What have Poncio and his devotees been working on?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore the author's use of comedy or humor in his novel. What instances of humor do you notice? Why do you think the author wrote his book with this tone in mind? Considering the subject matter, are you surprised by the lightheartedness of the novel as a whole?

Essay Topic 2

Explore the way Pantoja's sense of family seems to change throughout the novel. Where do his priorities lie? Describe Pantoja's relationship with his coworkers in the Special Service. What is their dynamic? How does his relationship with his relatives change throughout the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Explore the character Sinchi and his role in the novel. How does he relate to other characters? What narrative function does he serve? What is the significance of his hypocrisy and his manipulative personality? What does the author seem to be saying through his character?

(see the answer keys)

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