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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 type of contest does the General institute?

2. The General paid the blind man 5 cents to do which of the following?

3. According to rumor, what determined the General's lifespan?

4. Why does the General become uneasy after the palace is sacked?

5. In which activity is General Rodrigo de Aguilar authorized to beat the General?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Patricio Aragones feel toward the President?

2. What is the General's "first death"? Describe the circumstances and provide details.

3. What does the General do with the two thousand children whose continued existence would threaten the General's position as president?

4. What is the General's "second death"?

5. Who were the Federalists?

6. How does Patricio Aragones become the General's double?

7. How is the lottery system rigged?

8. What is accomplished at the meeting between the Minister of Health, the Minister of Defense, Manuela Sanchez, and the General?

9. How does the General prepare for the coming hurricane?

10. Describe the state of the presidential palace when the book opens.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the treatment of children in this novel. At various stages of the General's rule, we are confronted with potentially disturbing treatment of children. From the indiscriminate fathering of thousands of children to the imprisonment and slaughter of the two thousand children under seven whose job it is to control the lottery, the General commits many acts of violence against children. Why does Garcia Marquez include these acts in the novel? What does this treatment accomplish? How does it affect our perception of the General? Provide specific details from the novel as support for your claims.

Essay Topic 2

Because the novel spans such a vast period of time, much changes in the course of its plot. As the nation moves forward in history, technology encroaches on the traditional ways of life. Discuss the integration and appearance of technology in the novel. Consider the General's fascination with the gadgets he gives to Manuela Sanchez or the television campaign Jose Ignacio Saenz de la Barra launches against the General. How does technology creep into the novel? What is the overall effect on the work as a whole? Be sure to provide specific evidence to support your argument.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the novelist's play with time and space. How would you characterize the concept of time in this novel? How does the General transcend the worldly limitations of time and space? What is the significance of Garcia Marquez's play with these concepts in the novel? What is the overall message or effect? Provide specific support for your argument.

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