View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the name of Kino's town?

2. How does Kino know that his pearl is valuable?

3. Kino tells Juana that if he gives up the pearl, he will also lose what?

4. Where does Kino suggest going once he and his family are in the mountains?

5. How many pearl buyers are there for Kino?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the water Kino's family finds while on the run in Chapter 6. What does the water symbolize?

2. Why does Kino take off his clothes in Chapter 6?

3. What do the neighbors fear will happen to Kino after finding the giant pearl?

4. Describe the man and trackers as they rest for the night.

5. Describe the place where Juana and Kino spend the day in Chapter 6 while they are on the run.

6. What is Kino's plan of attack if the trackers do not pass his family on the road?

7. Where does Kino want to go after he leaves Juan Tomas's house in Chapter 5?

8. What does Juana do when she senses Kino running after her in the dark when she is going to throw the pearl back into the sea?

9. Why do all the divers leave their canoes on the beach the morning after Kino's big pearl find?

10. How do the pearl buyers operate to buy a pearl?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Initially in the novel, Kino finds his sense of security and hope in his family, his hut, and his canoe. How is his sense of security and comfort redefined after he finds the pearl?

1.) How does the pearl change Kino's dreams for his family?

2.) How does the pearl change his relationship with his family, especially with Juana who was previously a huge source of comfort to him?

Essay Topic 2

Water is an important backdrop element in the novel. Describe the different ways that Kino and his family survive with water.

1.) How does the beach impact Kino's life?

2.) Describe the waterbed that Kino finds at the mountaintop. Why is this setting appropriate for the events that follow? Explain thoroughly.

Essay Topic 3

What does the capital represent to the villagers and to Kino?

1.) How does Kino find the trek to the capital—a path where every step is filled with the unknown?

2.) How do the pearl buyers feel about the capital?

3.) Why do few villagers travel to the capital, although they could possibly get a better deal for their pearls?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 716 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample