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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 does Fouillade do during the rainstorm?

2. The men of the squad agree that support services should be performed by which of the following groups?

3. What does Lamuse believe about Eudoxie?

4. What is the squad's duty at night?

5. Where is Fouillade from?

Short Essay Questions

1. In what way is Fouillade similar to the dog, Labri?

2. What unusual orders are given to the unit in Chapter 11?

3. What is the condition of most of the soldiers the morning after the bombardment?

4. How does the author feel about the speech of the characters in the book he is writing?

5. How adequate are the rations and wages issued to the men?

6. Where is Fouillade from, and what is his hometown like?

7. Who was executed just before the events of Chapter 10, and why?

8. Describe Lamuse's relationship with Eudoxie.

9. How do Volpatte and Fouillade get lost?

10. How has the squad been reduced in numbers when Chapter 20 opens?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the novel, many opinions of the poilus are articulated indirectly. The perspective always stays with the men of Bertrand's squad and almost always with the narrator, but through the experiences of these men, the perceptions of many other people towards the poilus becomes clear.

Part 1) Explain how the poilus, and particularly groups like Bertrand's squad, who have spent a great deal of time in the trenches, are perceived by the more active forces, such as other formations that are on the march, or the Moroccan Division.

Part 2) Describe the shirker's attitudes towards the poilus. How are these attitudes shaped by the shirker's own failures and vices?

Part 3) Explain how the civilians and journalists see the poilus. How are these perceptions shaped by this group's desire to support the war?

Essay Topic 2

Eudoxie is a major character, although her time in the story is brief. She affects many characters and their interactions with her illuminate many details about these individuals.

Part 1) Who is Eudoxie? Where does she come from? What is unusual about her? Why is she frequently seen in seemingly dangerous areas near the front?

Part 2) Describe the effects that Eudoxie has on some of the men of the squad.

Part 3) Explain Eudoxie's purpose as a character. What does she represent, and what themes does her character relate to or affect?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, and in particular in the chapter "Bombardment," it is shown that the men have an intimate knowledge of artillery weapons used by both sides. Although these weapons seem to intercede only occasionally, their effect is devastating and seemingly random. The men have a strange mixture of admiration, respect, and fear of these weapons, mixed in with a strange kind of superstition developed over the course of many months spent trying to avoid death at the hands of these random killers.

Part 1) Using information from the book, discuss some of the types of artillery employed by both sides. How effective and accurate are these weapons?

Part 2) Describe the level of knowledge that the soldiers seem to have of the various kinds of artillery employed against them. Explain some of their more rational beliefs and fears.

Part 3) Explain some of the soldiers more irrational beliefs and fears about the artillery. Speculate about why these almost superstitious fears and practices came into being.

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