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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 the narrator believe he must hide from others?

2. The narrator chooses not to speak to Yakumo because he is ashamed of what?

3. Who brings Sebastian back to life, following his attempted execution?

4. What is Omi doing when the narrator finds him alone in the schoolyard?

5. What is the objective of the graphic game the boys play with each other?

Short Essay Questions

1. When the other boys are impressed with the narrator's crass remarks about sex, how does the narrator feel?

2. What sickness does the narrator suffer from and how does it affect him?

3. Regarding his obsession with death, what does the narrator discover when he reaches puberty?

4. Who was Sebastian of Reni's "Saint Sebastian"?

5. Why is the narrator's opportunity to live with his father cut short?

6. How does the narrator feel about the prospect of grabbing Omi during a game of Dirty?

7. What attracts the narrator to soldiers as a youth?

8. How is the grandmother affected when the narrator moves in with his father?

9. What attracts the narrator to the disinterested girl on the bus?

10. Why does the narrator feel he has gone through life fooling not just others, but himself?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In Confessions of a Mask, the narrator's body betrays him repeatedly. Write an essay discussing the various ways the narrator's body betrays him and how this drives him to hide his true self behind a mask.

Essay Topic 2

The picture of Joan of Arc fascinates the narrator in one of his earlier memories. Upon learning the knight in the photograph is a woman, the narrator loses interest in it. Why?

Essay Topic 3

The narrator is surrounded by feminine influence, yet certain social cues teach him how a boy "should" act.

1) Who provides the narrator with these social cues?

2) What does the narrator do to act out his gender expectations?

3) In what ways does the narrator struggle against his gender identity?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 675 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample