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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. Octavia is full of:

2. In Clarice, people take parts of the old city and use them in different ways for what?

3. Someone in Thekla will see what?

4. How does Melania's population renew itself?

5. The people in the city of Irene are:

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. 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?

4. Leonia, the city that reinvents itself daily, is in danger of what?

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

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

7. When Polo sees familiar faces in the city of Adelma, what does he start to wonder?

8. As Khan visualizes the growth of his empire, what are some of the concerns he has?

9. How do the cities described by Polo in Chapter 8 depict confusion?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Part 1) Compare and contrast the two characters in the story, Kublai Khan and Marco Polo. In what ways are they similar? How are they different?

Part 2) What kind of a relationship do Khan and Polo have? What does each learn from the other? Do the characters grow and develop in any way through their interactions with each other? If so, how? Cite examples from the book to support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

Towards the end of the book, Khan's confusion regarding the state of his cities grows.

Part 1) How does Polo use chess and strategy in an attempt to help Khan understand how cities rise and fall?

Part 2) How is Khan's confusion reflected in the confusion represented by the cities described in Polo's stories?

Part 3) Do the two main characters ever find their way out of the maze of confusion? Explain.

Essay Topic 3

In many of Polo's stories, there is a strong relationship between the living and the dead.

Part 1) Give specific examples from the book of cities that exhibit some type of connection between those who are alive and those who have passed on.

Part 2) Why does Polo cover this theme? Why does he return to it again and again? What is he trying to establish, either for himself or for the emperor, regarding the interconnectedness of the living and the dead?

(see the answer keys)

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