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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 are the two different colors of stripes on the prisoners' uniforms at Auschwitz?

2. The man who claims to have the last name of Finkelstein turns out to have inhabited which position in the past?

3. What substance is found to have been placed within the wounds of the man claiming to have the last name of Finkelstein?

4. On the journey from Auschwitz to Sachsenhausen, the first prisoners to die along the way according to Yanek are the prisoners without what?

5. When new prisoners are brought to Auschwitz in Chapter 19, a long-time prisoner whispers to them that any children among them should claim to be what age?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the significance of the novel's title?

2. For what reason does Fred become unable to work?

3. What distinction does Yanek make between the Trzebinia concentration camp and the other camps in which he has been imprisoned?

4. On which two occasions does Yanek vow to take every step he can "never to forget" (161) the atrocities committed during the Holocaust?

5. What happens to the prisoner who is recognized by the others at the salt mine as a former member of the Judenrat?

6. What morning routine does Yanek develop during his time imprisoned in Birkenau and why does he consider the routine important?

7. Which objects in the salt mine does Yanek consider aesthetically beautiful?

8. What scent does Yanek detect in the air when he is brought to the Birkenau death camp?

9. What is the source of the strange sound Yanek hears during his first night at Auschwitz?

10. For what purpose do the Nazis use cattle cars and in what way is their use symbolic?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How are sensory details used to strengthen the messages within Gratz’s novel Prisoner B-3087? Discuss at least two passages that include the use of sensory details and pull quotes from these passages to support your claim.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the instances of irony within the narrative of Prisoner B-3087 and analyze Gratz’s purpose for including each instance you discuss.

Essay Topic 3

How do the themes of deception and secrecy function within Prisoner B-3087 and what is Gratz’s message regarding these themes?

(see the answer keys)

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