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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. How does the woman in Terminal attempt suicide?

2. What deformation does Tancredi suffer from in the story bearing his name?

3. Who is the author of The Explosion in the Parlor?

4. Orion is killed by what in the story with his name?

5. Where are the potatoes from in Las Papas?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do the elderly couple in Mr. and Mrs. Martins prepare for death?

2. What activity is the father of Las Papas doing in the narrative? What does he teach his son?

3. How does the story The Model reflect the theme of aging?

4. How does the central theme and structure of Looking for the Rain God relate to other stories in the collection?

5. What do Tancredi's two heads do once he grows up in Tancredi?

6. What memory is related in the story Snow?

7. Who is the shoe breaker in The Shoe Breaker? What happens in this story?

8. Why does the central female character in Facing the Light send her servant away? What realization does she face?

9. What is the back-story established in Orion? Who are the main characters?

10. What central theme do Disappearing, A Lover's Ear, and Facing the Light all share? How are their characters similar?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare the settings and characters of The Grass-Eaters and Preparations. Where and when in Calcutta does The Grass-Eaters take place? How does the author effectively present the squalor of India?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the literary technique of imagery, metaphor, symbolism, and motif and identify each in Blackberries and Don't You Blame Anyone. How is the theme of the frailty of human interconnectedness reflected in these works?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the work and careers of Dino Buzzati and Stuart Dybek. How is each author's style reflected in the characters, settings, subjects and themes in The Falling Girl and Death of the Right Fielder?

(see the answer keys)

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