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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. Who catches what Caravaggio knocks off the table?

2. Where does Kip fall asleep when he is in Naples?

3. What organization does Kip belong to?

4. Who warned the English patient to be careful about his love for Katharine?

5. Who is Kip's mentor's secretary?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the hiding game that Hana and Kip play in the dark.

2. Explain how the English patient came to be severely burned.

3. Why do you think Caravaggio is so eager to disprove the English patient's identity?

4. What do you think it would be like to be Geoffrey Clifton in this story? Why?

5. Is it surprising to you to find out that the English patient was a spy during the war? Why or why not?

6. Who is Miss Morden? Why is she significant to Kip?

7. Explain the conflict between Hana and Caravaggio concerning the English patient's identity.

8. How does Katharine die?

9. How are Caravaggio and the English patient similar in their motivation for love in this chapter?

10. Describe how Katharine and the English patient fall in love.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Identify the climax of this story and the series of events leading up to the climax. How did characters respond to the climax? What did Ondaatje include in his story to insure that the climax would be as powerful and meaningful as possible?

Essay Topic 2

What is the purpose of a foil in literature? Describe one character in Ondaatje's novel that you believe is a foil of another character. Why do you think Ondaatje may have created characters in his work that emphasize each other's qualities?

Essay Topic 3

What do you think is the main theme of Onjaatje's novel? Identify at least three events in "The English Patient" that communicate this theme.

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