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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Polo finds Khan seated at a chessboard, what does the emperor invite Polo to do?
(a) Sit and play a game with him.
(b) Have a cup of tea while Khan finishes his game.
(c) Use the chess pieces to describe cities he has visited.
(d) Teach him how to play the game.

2. What do the residents of Ersilia do?
(a) Hang strings from the their ceilings.
(b) Build fantastic stringed instuments.
(c) Tie strings around their trees.
(d) Stretch strings from the corners of their houses.

3. What is at the center of Moriana?
(a) A strange contraption that controls the thoughts of its residents.
(b) It is hard to tell--there is too much smoke everywhere.
(c) An enormous hole plunging into the depths of the earth.
(d) Nothing--the city only has front and back sides.

4. In Argia, what are the streets filled with?
(a) Buttons.
(b) Frogs.
(c) Dirt.
(d) Jewels.

5. Who are the Penates and the Lares?
(a) The guardians of Baucis.
(b) The two species that protect the people of Leandra.
(c) The two main tribes of Ersilia.
(d) The ancestors of Melania's inhabitants.

Short Answer Questions

1. What types of objects are found in Clarice's museums?

2. The houses in Argia are filled with what?

3. Esmeralda is known as the city of what?

4. What does Polo describe Eusapia as?

5. Why does Khan wonder when Polo actually has time to travel to far-off cities?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the two sides of the city of Moriana.

2. Who lives in the underground city of Eusapia, and who has access to it?

3. What eventually happens to travelers who decide to stay in Phyllis to discover all of its secrets?

4. Describe the two species that protect Leandra.

5. When people get lost in Eudoxia, what do they look at to find their bearings?

6. How does Polo use the game of chess to help Khan better understand the cities of his empire?

7. Describe Esmeralda, the city of water.

8. It's not always clear in the story if Khan is speaking to Polo or merely imagining a conversation, such as when he supposedly confronts Polo regarding Venice. Whether the conversation happened or was imagined, what does Khan accuse Polo of regarding Venice?

9. In what significant way is Argia different from all other cities Polo describes?

10. Why is it that someone arriving at Thekla will see very little of the city?

(see the answer keys)

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