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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 Sylvia try to do when she calls Becca in Chapter 16?

2. What special day is it in Chapter 21?

3. What rumors about the refugee camp does Randolph comment on in Chapter 12?

4. What type of tree does the prince walk along in Chapter 21?

5. Who objects to Gemma's story in Chapter 15?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Becca find out the meaning of 'Ksiezniczka'?

2. What does Magda say about the teacher who taught her about the concentration camps?

3. What realization does Becca have when she meets Josef Potocki?

4. In Chapter 12, what does Becca note is missing from the ending of Gemma's version of the Briar Rose story?

5. What does Becca question Gemma about her story in Chapter 13?

6. In Chapter 24, why does Josef ask Becca to visit his house, and for how long?

7. How do the girls react to Gemma's explanation to how the cursed, dead people in her story can have future lives?

8. In Chapter 15, what is the song in Gemma's version of the Briar Rose story about?

9. How does Gemma explain that the cursed, dead people in her story can have future lives?

10. Why does Becca point out that Gemma had no tattoos?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze Yolen's use of symbolism in the novel "Briar Rose". What are some examples of symbolism in the novel? What do these symbols represent? How do the examples of symbolism relate to the theme of death and the Holocaust?

Essay Topic 2

What is an allegory? How is the novel "Briar Rose" an allegory of the sufferings experienced by those imprisoned in concentration and extermination camps during WWII?

Essay Topic 3

What happens at the end of the novel "Briar Rose"? Is everything resolved? Are there any surprises at the end of the novel? What happens to the principle characters?

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