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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. Where did a young Jew shoot Ernst von Rath?

2. What Richard Hannay novel does the author reference in this section?

3. What does Rilke celebrate in his poem Funf Gesange?

4. What country does Viktor receive a visa for on March 1, 1939?

5. What did Iggy visit for the first time in October 1947?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Emmy's relationship with her children.

2. Why are Joseph Roth's novels so interesting to Edmund?

3. Why did Iggy like Japan?

4. What was the children's relationship with the netsuke?

5. How did Austrian government react to the atrocities of World War Two?

6. In what way were conditions worsening at the end of Chapter 23?

7. Describe the family apartment when Elisabeth visits after the second world war.

8. How did Anna save the netsuke?

9. What problems does Viktor have with the vitrine in Chapter 15?

10. Why was Iggy happy to settle down in Tokyo?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How was Hitler able to turn the public against the Jews and other minorities in Germany? What was the environment in Germany that allowed him to create such hatred towards the minorities? What has western Europe done to ensure this won't happen again?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the book's chronological setting.

1. What were the main concerns during the early part of the 20th century? How does the author express these concerns?

2. How would the author change the book if it was set in today's society?

Essay Topic 3

How did his family's suffering effect de Waal's own upbringing? How has de Waal tried to cope with what his family has been through? Do the students think second and third generations can be effected by problems that occurred within their family over 50 years before?

(see the answer keys)

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