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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 happens to hundreds of German Jewish boys in 1934?

2. What penance does Ernie impose upon himself for not loving the farmer's wife who took him in?

3. What is Vernichtungswissenschaft?

4. How does Benjamin view Jewish suffering?

5. How did the SS officers calm and reassure the prisoners upon their arrival?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Ernie unable to fight to defend Jacob, even though he trains himself to do so?

2. Why does Benjamin Levy say that to be a Jew is impossible?

3. Why does Ernie compare himself to a cat?

4. Why do the children scream when the boxcar stops?

5. Why are the old men of The Association of Zemyock surprised that Ernie has returned to them?

6. What part does the music of the band play in the successful extermination of the Jews?

7. How does Ernie describe Jesus?

8. Why did the colored identity cards give the Jews a false sense of security?

9. What happens to Ernie in the infirmary where he is put to recover from his torture session?

10. What does Ernie do to turn himself into a dog?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

There are moments in this story when Ernie is happy. In your essay, identify and explain the moments that cause him to briefly experience happiness. Do they make his life better or worse? Why do you think so?

Essay Topic 2

Evaluate this story in terms of tone and mood. Is it unrelentingly dark? Are there funny scenes? Are there lovable characters? Are all of the non-Jews evil? How does the author keep his reading audience from being overwhelmed by despair at this story? Use concrete examples and quotations from the story to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 3

Six million Jews is a very large number of people. Had they determined that it was appropriate to fight their oppressors, they could possibly have overpowered them. Why didn't they fight back? Use examples of their thoughts and actions in the story to substantiate your opinion.

(see the answer keys)

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