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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 promise does Dolorita and Eduviges make to each other?

2. Why do the men who carry Miguel's coffin complaining after his burial?

3. How does Damiana originally know Juan?

4. Who tells Juan to go to Comala?

5. How many children are in Damiana's family?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Fulgor get Dolores to agree to marry Pedro?

2. Why are the two women that Juan encounters in the street worried?

3. What is the deal that Abundio and Eduviges make?

4. What does the woman tell Juan about nights in Comala?

5. Why is Father Rentería conflicted after Miguel's death?

6. Why is Eduviges convinced that Juan does not meet Abundio on the road to Comala?

7. Why does Fulgor end up working with don Pedro even after don Lucas' death?

8. Describe the encounter between Father Rentería and María Dyada after Eduviges' death.

9. How is Comala different from how Juan's mother describes it?

10. How do Pedro and Dolores part ways?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The women in the novel are very vulnerable characters who often are at the mercy of evil, controlling men. Select at least three of the following characters and analyze their place in the context of the novel:

- Dolores

- Eduviges

- Susana

- Damiana

- Donis' sister

Addressing the following questions:

- How does the character react to her fate?

- How is the character motivated by factors related to her gender?

- How do other characters treat her?

- Overall, do you think women are totally powerless in the novel? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

In the novel, Pedro thinks: "Nothing can last forever. There isn't any memory, no matter how intense, that doesn't fade out at last" (95). Do you agree with this? Cite evidence from the text that supports your conclusion. Do any of the memories that affect the characters lives fade out? Which memories do not fade away? How do these memories affect the characters' fates?

Essay Topic 3

The point of view in the novel changes often from 1st person narration to third person. Find at least one example each of first person narration and third person narration and explain how it shifts the reader's attention to the character and plot. Make sure you indicate who the narrator is in the first person example. In the first person example, what does the reader know (or suspect) that the narrator does not?

(see the answer keys)

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