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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. Who greets the athletes when they are directed into a room?

2. How early do Will and Beanpole arrive at the games?

3. What kind of illness does Will's master have?

4. Why is Beanpole struggling with some of this matches?

5. What does Will find out when he goes to visit Fritz?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Will's master relax and what kind of information seems to fascinate him?

2. How does Will get out of the city and who is waiting for him? What does that person do?

3. When do Will and Beanpole arrive at the Games, who do they see there and what do they do when they arrive?

4. What does Will's instructor show him?

5. What does Will's master do to him about what he found and what is Will's response?

6. Why do Will and Fritz talk about how to get out of the city, what do they think is the best way and what concerns Will?

7. How does Will get to his master's house, what does it look like and where might his master being in the social hierarchy?

8. When Will returns home after a long errand for his master what does he find out when he gets there?

9. What do the athletes do when they first arrive in the city?

10. How does Beanpole feel about his efforts? What happens the day after the games end?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In The City of Gold and Lead, the main hero is a male, as in a large percentage of novels. Discuss the following:

1. Why do you think novels more often have a male hero than a female one?

2. Do you believe there are girls as capable (or more so) than Will or Fritz? Would the novel be as interesting to you if a girl were was one of the human spies? Why or why not.

3. Do you think females (in the real world) are just as likely and capable as males to be heroes? Why or why not.

4. Would you rather read a book with a male or female hero or do you have a preference. Explain your response.

Essay Topic 2

In the world of academe, science fiction is often considered an inferior form of the novel compared to "classic" literature. Discuss the following:

1. Why do you think science fiction might be considered second-rate compared to the classics?

2. Do you think science fiction has the same elements as the classics? Why or why not?

3. What are the purposes do you think for people reading "the classics"? What are the purposed for people reading science fiction? Is one purpose better than another? Explain your response.

4. Would you read science fiction even outside an educational setting? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

Will discovers that the atmosphere is difficult for humans and the air completely incompatible with human life. This causes humans to suffer and age quickly, making them unable to survive inside the city for very long, which might suggest why no one has ever come out of the Tripod cities. It also does not bode well for Will and Fritz who have just become slaves to alien Masters.

1. Slavery has been in existence since the earliest records of humans. Discuss the disadvantages of slavery to a society and to a culture as a whole.

2. Discuss the advantages of slavery to those in power and (possibly will need research) why slavery became a part of human civilizations.

3. Discuss the symbolism between the air the Tripods breath being incompatible with human life and the fact that the Tripods' presence on earth have created a world of slaves who are under absolute control. Illustrate your statements with details from the text.

(see the answer keys)

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