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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. Which of the following characters in NOT one of the group that has had a run-in with Gabriel Corte?

2. What does a passing soldier offer to Florence?

3. What family is introduced in Chapter 2?

4. In Chapter 13, what does the young girl of the house do that soothes the soldier?

5. How many children are in the family in Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Jeanne Michaud see while on the road to Tours that makes her cry and why does it affect her?

2. Describe the scene in the town where Gabriel Corte has refused a room.

3. What happens between Charles Langelet and the young couple he meets on the road?

4. What does Philippe Pericand volunteer to do when the citizens of Paris begin to evacuate the city?

5. What is the atmosphere of Paris and among its citizens in Chapters 5 and 6?

6. How do the experiences while fleeing Paris affect the character of Gabriel Corte?

7. How does Chapter 20, with the scene of the cat in the garden, contrast with Chapter 21, as the Pericands flee the burning village?

8. Describe the feelings of Hubert Pericand about the war between Germany and France.

9. What are Philippe Pericand's feelings toward the children of the Children's Home?

10. Describe the Pericand's charity in Chapter 10 and why it comes to an abrupt stop.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Nemirovsky does not launch into extensive descriptions of her characters but rather allows her characters to reveal their own personalities, as well as the relationships they have with other characters. How do the characters in the novel accomplish this? How do we learn about the characters through the action in the novel? What do we learn about the characters through their relationships with other characters? What does this do for the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the attitudes of the poor toward the rich. These attitudes are largely expressed through Hortense Gaillard and her traveling party and the other servants of the novel. What are these people's opinions of the rich? Does the fact that they work for the rich factor into their opinions? Do the poor have a harder time making it during the war? Provide examples.

Essay Topic 3

A few characters in the novel seem reluctant to evacuate Paris and bothered by the fact that they have to share the plight of the exodus with regular people. These characters are desperate to separate themselves from everyone else and the war. Discuss the idea of separating one's self from the war. Which characters refuse to accept the reality of the situation? How do they separate themselves from the war and the other refugees? Are they successful? Why or why not?

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