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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. Where is Casaubon, in Chapter 111?

2. Casaubon reads a story, written by Belbo during his boyhood, about what musical instrument?

3. Who tries to restrain Casaubon's growing fervor for the occult in Chapter 63?

4. What do the cloaked individuals want from Belbo?

5. Where does Casaubon go to inquire about Aglie in Chapter 112?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Lia try to explain to Casaubon, in Chapter 63?

2. What is set up by the cloaked individuals in the Conservatoire?

3. Why does Casaubon enter randomly chosen lines of text, which have nothing to do with the occult, into the computer?

4. What do Salon and Casaubon talk about when Casaubon visits Salon in his shop?

5. What happens to Belbo, at the end of the novel?

6. What is the final piece of information for the Plan, supplied by Salon?

7. What was Napoleon's role in the Jesuit-Templar conflict?

8. What does the group of cloaked individuals want with Belbo?

9. According to Casaubon's group, what were some of the Jesuits' accomplishments?

10. What conclusion does Belbo reach, regarding Francis Bacon, in the Plan?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many different views are expressed in the novel regarding occult knowledge; for example, Bramanti wants to disseminate occult knowledge because of the power inherent in it, whereas Garamond cares only for the profit that can be gained from selling it. Discuss the different views of occult knowledge and mysticism presented in the novel, and reasons for each of those views. Which one do you agree with most, and why? Which one do you think the author would agree with, and why? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the main characters' individual quests for knowledge and truth. How do Casaubon, Belbo and Diotallevi search for their version of the truth? What does each character, respectively, discover? What are the similarities and differences in each character's version of the truth? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

Essay Topic 3

The Knights Templar are one of the main occult groups presented in the novel. Why is so little known about them? Why are they so central to a variety of beliefs and traditions? Why are scholars so interested in them after so many centuries? What information presented regarding the Templars is fact, and what is speculation? Be sure to cite specific examples from the text to support your thesis.

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