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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 does the fine weather on the day of the picnic in Central Park make Julius recall?

2. What constant struggle does Julius exclaim on, after protecting the woman and her baby from the wind-blown construction barriers on rue Philippe?

3. What does Moji say she actively worries about, during the picnic in Central Park?

4. What does Julius say he is more likely to do in the months of March, April and May?

5. When Julius goes to the club Le Panais, where does Julius say he thought all the Africans in Brussels were from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is it that Julius says cut him to the quick when he was talking with Dr. Maillotte over dinner?

2. What is the vision Julius has while he is sitting in the park, watching the starlings?

3. How does Julius kill half an hour when he is early to meet Dr. Maillotte?

4. What does Julius say his relationship with winter is like?

5. How does Julius respond when Moji tells Julius that she has never forgotten him sexually assaulting her when they were students?

6. How does Julius explain his views about psychiatry to his friend?

7. How does Julius respond when his friend’s girlfriend Lise-Anne asks him about the most humorous cases he had seen among the mentally ill?

8. How does the model of New York from the 1964 World’s Fair serve as a metaphor for the book?

9. What was the last time before his fathers funeral that Julius says that he had seen a dead body?

10. What is the leap in time and setting that has taken place between chapters 20 and 21?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Evaluate the ending of Open City. Does it ring true to you? Does it successfully resolve the problems and tensions that preceded it? What would you change, if anything? What are you left wishing for closure on, if anything?

Essay Topic 2

What are the advantages and disadvantages of the style Cole uses for this novel? What does Cole gain by Julius’ impressions being so egalitarian? What does he lose by constantly changing focus, from one scene to the next, without building the kinds of personal drama we expect in a novel? How is this style fitted to the themes of Julius’ interests? Does it ultimately weigh in the book’s favor, or is its style an obstacle to the book’s meaning?

Essay Topic 3

Write an evaluative review of Open City. What is this book’s place in our culture? Who will find this book most useful? What are its uses? What are its limitations?

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