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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 weapon does Lieutenant Fenimore use against the narrator?

2. What type of fish is N'ba N'ga?

3. What does the narrator describe the making of his shell as?

4. How does the narrator see the shape of space?

5. What swarm of insects does the narrator describe flying through the air in the second part of the story, in the railway embankment scene?

Short Essay Questions

1. In what way, according to the narrator's description, does the existence of a shell bring about eyes and the ability to see?

2. How does the narrator describe being with Ursula H'x when their routes intersect?

3. What explanation does the narrator give for caring about the opinion of whoever wrote the sign he first sees?

4. How does the narrator see evolution as confining?

5. Describe the problems with the advice N'ba N'ga gives his family.

6. How does Lll react when she first meets N'ba N'ga?

7. Describe N'ba N'ga's objections to living on land.

8. What is the attitude of the New Ones to the Dinosaurs, when Qfwfq first encounters the New Ones after his period of isolation?

9. In the end of the mollusk's story, in what way does he encounter the female mollusk?

10. What happens to the initial wealth that Qfwfq builds up?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In COSMICOMICS, the characters exist over enormous periods of time, while astronomical events take place in the formation of the universe. Discuss the role of time in COSMICOMICS.

1) What role does time play in communication in "The Light-Years"? How does time affect the separation between individuals?

2) What is the role of time in "The Dinosaurs"? How does time change perception?

3) What is the effect of passing time on the characters? How does passing time affect older characters like Qfwfq's uncle in "The Aquatic Uncle," and his grandmother in "At Daybreak"?

4) What is the effect of astronomical lengths of time in the stories? How does the passage of astronomical lengths of time affect the betting in "How Much Shall We Bet?" and Qfwfq in "A Sign in Space"? How do the astronomical lengths of time in the novel affect the reader's understanding of Qfwfq?

Essay Topic 2

Because the stories in COSMICOMICS discuss the natural world examined by science, they address mankind's relationship to the natural world. Discuss the relationship between man and the natural world in COSMICOMICS.

1) What is the relationship between the world of mankind and the natural world of the mollusk in "The Spiral"?

2) How is mankind related to the evolution of the universe? How does life on Earth contrast with the natural world before life developed?

3) How do natural forces like evolution and changes in the universe affect characters in the stories?

Essay Topic 3

Calvino's stories parallel each other to a greater or lesser degree. Discuss the parallels between stories in COSMICOMICS.

1) What parallels are there between "The Spiral," "The Light-Years," and "A Sign in Space"? How are these three stories' portrayals of signs and creation different and similar?

2) What parallels are there between "At Daybreak," "Without Colors," and "The Aquatic Uncle"? How are these three stories' portrayals of change and human reactions to change different and similar?

3) What parallels are there between "How Much Shall We Bet?" and "Games Without End"? How are these two stories' portrayals of rivalry different and similar?

4) What other parallels are there between the stories in COSMICOMICS? What role do parallels between the stories play in the development of Calvino's themes?

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