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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 Ida eat, in order to save food for her son?

2. Where is Davide Segre's family home?

3. How many of the thousand Jews who left Tiburtina returned in 1945?

4. A pact was formed, in 1947, between which two entities?

5. Where does Davide deliver his lecture in 1947?

Short Essay Questions

1. What were the Nuremberg trials?

2. In what ways does Ida sacrifice her own well-being for that of her son, in 1944?

3. What happens when Ida tries to put Useppe in school?

4. How does Useppe die?

5. What happens to Hitler in 1945?

6. What happens to Ida after Useppe's death?

7. What is revealed, during Davide's speech, about his feelings for the bourgeoisie and anarchy?

8. How does Ida feel about Useppe's frequent outings alone?

9. What does Davide say about Jesus, during his tavern lecture?

10. How does Bella save Useppe's life in 1947?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Gunther only appears twice in the novel, but plays a major role. Is he a sympathetic character? Why does the author choose to mix such pitiable qualities with such a hateful persona? Are Gunther's mistakes a result of his situation, or is he an inherently bad person? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

Essay Topic 2

Nino's attitudes toward the war, politics, and his family's situation change drastically after the war ends. Why do these changes occur? How do Nino's relationships with his revolutionary friends change as a result of his changed beliefs? What are his new priorities, and why? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

Essay Topic 3

There are strange and surreal events in the novel, such as Caruli's story about the dirigible, which don't make sense, and which make the reader question the validity of the rest of the events. Why does the author make the truth of these events so ambiguous? What literary purpose do they serve? Are they effective? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

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