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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. With whom does Carlos share his fear of sharks?

2. Who catches Carlos and his friends taunting the young soldiers?

3. What is the nickname of the pool man at the beach club to which Manuel and Rafael belong?

4. Who says that "evil [...] is the absence of good"?

5. How high is the cliff over which the boys and Louis XVI frequently go?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Carlos imagine the diving board telling him to do, and why?

2. How does Carlos feel now as an adult about the time when he killed many lizards?

3. How does Carlos feel about Lou and Norma Chait?

4. Describe breadfruit.

5. Describe the young man who accosts Carlos and Jorge in Chapter 32.

6. As discussed in Chapter 37, why does Carlos feel shame about his upbringing?

7. Describe the Aquarium of the Revolution.

8. How does El Loco become the hero of Chapter 32?

9. How do Carlos and his grandfather react to the Communist propaganda in Chapter 38?

10. Who makes the peashooters and out of which material, and why do the boys use peas?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the irony inherent within the character El Loco as well as his role throughout the book. What does he symbolize? Why?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the effects of Communism, using either money or the Bosque as a lens through which to view those effects.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the idea of death in this book. What are the various moments that seem like a type of death? What are the moments that Carlos himself identifies as a death? Do you think death is a good symbol for those events, or do you think something else could more appropriately have symbolized them? Explain.

(see the answer keys)

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