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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Paz, why does the liar tell lies to himself?
(a) He is afraid of finding truth in other people.
(b) He does not know the truth.
(c) He is afraid of the world.
(d) He is afraid of himself.

2. As the closure to Chapter Two, the reader sees what shadow spreading out over Mexico?
(a) The shadow of truth.
(b) The shadow of Nobody.
(c) The shadow of Catholicism.
(d) The shadow of dissimulation.

3. Why does a Mexican blend into his surroundings and become solely Appearance?
(a) He loves appearance.
(b) He fears human interaction.
(c) He wants to end his individuality.
(d) He fears appearances.

4. What masculine trait enters into the idea of feminine modesty?
(a) Protection.
(b) Vanity.
(c) Love.
(d) Strength.

5. Why are people sad if a person dies badly (Chapter Three)?
(a) There is no honor in an untoward death.
(b) The death should reflect the life.
(c) There will be no rest for his soul.
(d) The life is less important than the death.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Paz's opinion, when is a person most likely to see himself as precious and unique?

2. Paz discusses the result of persecution on the pachuco. What is that result?

3. In Paz's estimation, what vital word has the Mexican forgotten?

4. Why are a woman's instincts those of a species rather than her own?

5. What role does the Mexican man play in society?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is left of the colonial world? Are those remnants the best or the worst parts that could be left behind?

2. What is dissimulation? How does it compare to lying? How does it affect the Mexican's idea of himself?

3. What is the origin of the pachuco? How does that characterization prepare the reader for the rest of the book?

4. What is the Mexican view of death? When does death become saddest?

5. How did the Aztecs view sin? How does that idea explain the Conquest? What enormous change did Catholicism introduce?

6. What is Paz's understanding of woman? How does it fit the Mexican mindset?

7. Who is the Chingada? What relation does she hold to every Mexican, whether male or female?

8. Who represents the conflict that Mexicans have not been able to solve? What effect does that conflict have on their culture?

9. How does Paz explain the Mexican woman's role in society? How does that strip her of her personality?

10. In Chapter Three, the following idea is presented: "There is nothing so joyous as a Mexican fiesta, but there is also nothing so sorrowful. Fiesta night is also a night of mourning" (Chapter 3, page 53). What does that mean?

(see the answer keys)

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