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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. Santiago's house is made out of a former:

2. Despite her fear of Santiago, what does Divina Flor do that might help him the morning of his death?

3. Bayardo San Roman returns his bride to her parents because:

4. The twins who planned to murder Santiago were named:

5. Who persuades the twins to wait until after the bishop's visit to kill Santiago?

Short Essay Questions

1. The fact that Santiago Nasar never turns on the light in his bedroom, but instead stays in the dark, might symbolize what idea?

2. The women in the book seem divided in their opinions of the necessity of Santiago's murder. What are their differing opinions?

3. Describe Angela's relationship with her mother.

4. Aside from the code of honor exhibited by the Vicario twins, what other family values are exhibited in the book?

5. Why does the priest suggest that the autopsy killed Santiago all over again?

6. Underneath the "proper" appearances of the characters in this chapter, many ugly truths lie. What does this suggest about the townspeople?

7. Why do we learn about Bayardo San Roman from the narrator's mother?

8. Both the twins and the magistrate's report are described as floating in water. What is suggested by this idea?

9. What does the motif of excess suggest in the chapter?

10. How does the narrator describe his mother?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the magistrate's note, "Give me a prejudice and I will move the world." Write an essay in which you connect the statement to the events of the novel, identifying the prejudices that motivate the characters and contribute to the themes of the novel.

Essay Topic 2

Many dreams are described in detail in the novel. Freud said, "Unless the content of the dream rightly understood is inspired by alien spirits, it is part of [one's] own being." In an essay, connect Freud's belief to the author's use of dreams in the novel. Consider how the character's dreams reveal part of each character's being, and what is being revealed.

Essay Topic 3

Women in "Chronicle of a Death Foretold" seem to have limited power. Consider the situations in which women exercise power in the novel, and write an essay in which you identify a possible theme the author communicates through women in positions of power.

(see the answer keys)

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