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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 political association do the two men at the beginning of Section 3 claim Salvatore Colasberna to be involved with?

2. Who do two high-ranking ministers discuss at the beginning of Section 3?

3. What does the captain tell the dead man's brother the group possibly responsible for his brother's death are willing to do if they are not obeyed?

4. What does the captain ask the dead man's workers and relatives to do before leaving the police station?

5. What does the man who comes to talk to the police in Section 5 say that the mafia wouldn't be if it existed?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Little Priest feel guilty at the beginning of Section 5?

2. How does an old man say one can avoid being cuckolded in Section 4?

3. What is the nature of the speech a man gives to the police regarding Don Arena in Section 5?

4. What is the initial information the police find on Diego Marchica at the end of Section 3?

5. What information do the police first find out regarding Salvatore after his identity is discovered?

6. What does Mrs. Nicolosi reveal to police regarding a nickname in Section 3?

7. What does an old man decide Marchica should do at the end of Section 4?

8. How does Little Priest act in public after meeting with police in Section 5?

9. Why does the captain ask the men of the Santa Fara Co-op to write down their names and addresses at the end of Section 1?

10. What is the nature of the letter Little Priest sends to police in Section 5?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

A main theme presented throughout the book is an analysis of the nature of Sicilian society in the 1960s. Part 1.) What can we learn about the fear many Sicilians had based on the reactions of the bus passengers onboard when Salvatore is shot? Part 2.) What evidence is present to suggest the mafia is responsible for many of the actions of the Sicilian society during the 1960s based on their portrayal in this book? Part 3.) What possibility is there of the police seeing a change in the nature of the Sicilian society and how do they try and achieve this change?

Essay Topic 2

The portrayal of corruption is an important theme found in the book that makes the reader question the similarities the police have with the mafia. Part 1.) How does the mafia use corruption as a means to an end in the book, namely in their business ventures? Part 2.) What is telling of the nature of the police based on their tendencies of corruption in the book? Part 3.) Is the corruption used by the police warranted given their desire to find justice or does this prove they are no more innocent than the mafia?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the concept of guilt that is presented in the book through characters like Little Priest. Why does this emotion so rarely appear in the book and what role might that have in better understanding the nature of the mafia?

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