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 does the stranger tell a group of people Pan Andrew did that makes them angry?

2. Why do the men in the caravan carry weapons?

3. To whom does Joseph hear the Tartars praying?

4. Which best describes the Tartars' religious belief?

5. What is the most accurate description of the Tartar army?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the oath that the trumpeter takes.

2. Describe the agreement that Elzbietka and Joseph make to one another when in the tower in Chapter 8.

3. In Chapter 1, after the stranger offers to buy the item sitting in Pan Andrew's wagon, what happens?

4. In Chapter 5, when Kanty and the Charnetski family go to the lodgings Joseph has found, what do they witness on their way?

5. In Chapter 2, what does Pan Andrew Charnetski tell the guard when he arrives at the palace gates and what is the guard's response?

6. In Chapter 7, on the night that Elzbietka tells Joseph that Johann Tring is with her uncle, what else does she tell him about Kreutz?

7. Describe the caravan from Chapter 1.

8. What does Pan Andrew explain to Jan Kanty in Chapter 4 once the mob scene has dissipated?

9. In Chapter 8, Stas identifies Joseph and Elzbietka to a stranger. What information does he provide to the stranger?

10. Explain how the city of Krakow reacts to the villagers fleeing.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay about the fire. Discuss how the solution today for putting out fires is the same as the solution was in the Middle Ages. Compare today's methods of solving the problem with the methods of solving the problem in the Middle Ages. Do you think that the Middle Ages' method of putting out fires was smart and effective? Other than to teach a historically accurate event, why do you think the author goes to such great lengths to describe the methods of putting out the fire?

Essay Topic 2

How does the fact that the peasants' dependence upon agriculture as described in the book exacerbates the conflict between superstition and science in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

How do you feel about the fact that Elzbietka cannot study at the University because she is female? Did this add to the plot line? Does it seem strange that Joseph doesn't know the reason for her not being allowed to study? Why would the author have handled this particular issue in this manner?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,036 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample