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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. Who are the Penates and the Lares?

2. In Esmeralda, people can choose to travel by:

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

4. To make the passing from life to death less abrupt, what have the people of Eusapia done?

5. When Polo lands at the furthest city to which he's ever traveled, he arrives when?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. When Polo suggests to Khan that the garden where they share stories may exist only in their minds and that, in reality, they may still be traveling, what does the emperor say?

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

5. How does Clarice preserve and display its history?

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

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

8. When Polo speaks of imperfections in the wood of Khan's chessboard, how does the emperor respond?

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

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Polo reveal the disintegration of Khan's empire through his stories? Explain and support your answer with points from the book.

Essay Topic 2

When telling stories to Khan from the steps of the palace, Polo emphasizes the importance of the evening breeze they are enjoying. Explain how the breeze serves as a grounding mechanism. How does it work to imprint memories in Khan's mind? What purpose does it serve the stories Polo tells? How does the breeze affect Khan's connection to the stories and his cities?

Essay Topic 3

Briefly compare and contrast the type of information Polo shares with Khan with what other messengers share with the emperor. Then, address the following questions:

1) What is the goal of Khan's messengers and advisers when they share reports with Khan?

2) What does Polo wish to convey to Khan? How do his storytelling goals differ from those of the other messengers?

3) In your opinion, who is sharing information that is most useful to the emperor--Polo or the other messengers? Why?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 922 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample