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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. Where does Michael go at the end of Part 3, Chapter 12?

2. Why does Michael say "there's no need to talk"?

3. In the beginning of Part 3, Chapter 7, what does Michael say he had never thought about at the time?

4. Where does Michael send the tapes and recorder?

5. What familiar feeling does Michael get again in Part 3, Chapter 9?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe what is said in the letter Michael receives from the prison warden.

2. What does Michael do during the summer after the trial, as described in Part 3, Chapter 1?

3. How do the Michael's feelings about the trial become "awakened" in Chapter 3?

4. Describe Gertrud and the relationship she develops with Michael as described in Chapter 2.

5. What does Michael decide to do after he and Gertrud separate in Chapter 5?

6. Describe the situation that happens at the restaurant in Chapter 15.

7. What happens when Michael speaks to Hanna, right before she is released, at the end of chapter 9?

8. What does Michael do with his own writing?

9. In Chapter 16, why does Michael say he "finds it unendurable to do nothing"?

10. How does Hanna respond to Michael's questions about the trial and their relationship?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What does Hanna's actions on the night of the church bombing say about her character? Or her behavior while being questioned by the judge? Is Hanna a sympathetic character? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

In Part 1, Chapter 5 Michael says that he recognizes a life pattern in himself, and that "often enough in my life I have done things I had not decided to do." What does Michael mean by this? Describe and give examples of the disconnect Michael feels between making a decision and completing an action. How does this act as a foreshadowing of Michael's later behavior?

Essay Topic 3

In Part 1, Chapter 9, Michael asks "Why does what was beautiful suddenly shatter in hindsight because it concealed dark truths?" What does this foreshadow? Do you agree with Michael that happiness about something cannot be regained if the memory ends in unhappiness? Why or why not? How does this question relate to the novel as a whole?

(see the answer keys)

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