View a FREE sample

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 main character in "What Story Down There Awaits its End?" have to fight?

2. Who once had a personal relationship with Marana, according to Irnerio?

3. Where does the reader find the key to Ludmilla's house?

4. Where has "On the Carpet of Leaves Illuminated by the Moon" been banned?

5. In "In a Network of Lines that Intersect," what does the underground want to do with the main character?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Ludmilla regret meeting Flannery?

2. Describe the plot of "Around an Empty Grave."

3. Describe the significance of the reader going from innocent to agent.

4. What do you think Calvino is trying to say about censorship?

5. How are sensations used in the story "On the Carpet of Leaves Illuminated by the Moon"?

6. Describe the way information is given to the reader in Chapter 6.

7. Describe the book "In a Network of Lines that Intersect."

8. What foreshadowing is presented in the reader's desire to visit Flannery?

9. Describe how the ramifications of falsehoods are explored in Chapter 9.

10. What is the role of the OEPHLW?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How do you think Calvino views his readers? What makes you believe this is so? How does he compare to Flannery in this sense?

Essay Topic 2

Is reading a personal experience? Why or why not? What evidence in the novel suggests that it is? Cite at least three examples.

Essay Topic 3

Describe the battle for language in the novel. How do the two sides continue to fight? How does the battle still affect those who read? What tone does the battle set for the novel?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 713 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample