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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 did the General seize power the first time?

2. Where does death finally find the General?

3. According to ambassador Fischer, how could the marines land in the nation?

4. After Leticia's funeral, what does the General do to the birds?

5. What animal does Emanuel resemble when he is born?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the successful assassination attempt.

2. Describe Jose Ignacio Saenz de la Barra.

3. How does the General decide to restore the Church to the nation?

4. How are the creditors treated when they arrive at the palace?

5. What happens to Monsignor Demetrius Aldous as he concludes his investigation of the General's mother?

6. What are the contents of the sack which appears to be full of coconuts?

7. Why does the General order the Church and its clergy to be expelled from the nation and how is this accomplished?

8. What does Monsignor Demetrius Aldous discover about Bendicion Alvarado?

9. Who is actually running the government by the end of Chapter 5?

10. After he has finished with the school girl, how does the General deal with her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Death is a consistent motif throughout the entire novel. Main characters die gruesome deaths and the General's death is described in vivid detail throughout the novel. How does death, especially the General's repeated deaths, play into the novel as a whole? Consider the repetition of the moments of death as well as the death imagery which pervades the novel. Be sure to focus your critique on specific evidence from the novel.

Essay Topic 2

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.

Essay Topic 3

Rapes and coerced sex occur throughout the novel. How does Garcia Marquez treat sexual assault? How does it affect the novel's portrayal of women? Of the General? How does the sinner/saint dynamic play out in this novel, considering the frequent rapes? Support your argument with evidence from the novel.

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This section contains 877 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample