View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What weapon does Sharpe fire at the Neapolitan soldiers?

2. For what does most of London society admire Rossendale?

3. Why do Calvet and Sharpe decide to trust each other?

4. What do d'Alembord and Harper worry about concerning Jane?

5. What do Sharpe and his group have to negotiate in order to escape?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Ducos do as a last ditch effort and why does he do it?

2. Why does Lucille write to Roland?

3. How do Calvet and Sharpe plan to avoid the Cardinal's men?

4. Why did Lucille's gun wound Sharpe so badly and what is involved for him because of that?

5. What does Calvet do in Naples first?

6. What does Calvet do while Sharpe is implementing his plan and how does it all end?

7. What does Calvet decide to do about Ducos based on local authorities' response to his request?

8. Describe the fight at Ducos' defensive room.

9. Where does Frederickson go to find Ducos and how does that work out?

10. How do the maneuvers at Ducos' estate turn out as far as Ducos' men are concerned?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Cornwell is masterful in his description of battles and life in general in for a soldier during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 1820s. Discuss one of the following:

1. Trace and analyze Cornwells's descriptive passages about life as a soldier. How does he use descriptions of the five senses to make the reader feel s/he is there? Do you find his descriptions compelling? Seemingly accurate? How would the novel be different if Cornwell did not include such descriptive passages?

2. Analyze Cornwells's descriptive passages about the social structure of the times and discuss what you think it would be like to be a person of wealth and/or privilege such as John Rossendale, Henri Lassan, Napoleon, and General Calvet. Contrast that to the lives of those who are in a lower social strata such as Sharpe and Harper or one in service to someone of wealth and/or privilege.

3. Describe and analyze Cornwell's descriptive passages about the topographical setting and the physical descriptions of the people. Does Cornwell do an adequate job of actually making the reader "see" the land/sea where the action is taking place? How about getting a visual image of the characters? How do the descriptions of the setting add to the novel? Do you like having an idea of how a character looks? How would the novel be different without such descriptions?

Essay Topic 2

Sharpe, despite his background, is an officer and a gentleman and is therefore accorded more respect and trust even in enemy territory than the common soldier. Discuss the following:

1. Does it seem likely that officers are usually more respectable than enlisted men back then? What about today? Why or why not.

2. Sharpe has begun an affair with another woman while still married to Jane. Do you think this is how an officer and gentleman comports himself? Why or why not.

3. In the present military in the United States, both officers and enlisted can be held for court martial for adultery or having sexual relations with someone of inferior rank. Why do you think this is so? Do you agree with the policy?

Essay Topic 3

Frederickson's gentle rebuff leads him to travel away from Lucille and engage in successful detective work in Paris. The rebuff also sets up the gradual development of the love triangle resulting, at the novel's end, in the break between Frederickson and Sharpe.

1. Why do you think Frederickson and Sharpe ended their friendship because of Lucille? Use examples from the book to support your answer.

2. What does it say about the character of Frederickson and Sharpe that they don't stay friends because of Lucille? Use examples from the book to support your answer.

3. Do you think two people who like the same other person can remain friends if one of them is successful in his/her pursuit? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 956 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample