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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. After Cincinnatus gets the news about the new prisoner, what does his cot seem to change into?

2. What about Pierre does Cincinnatus say might prevent him from making an effective escape?

3. Who does the director say will need time to prepare for the execution?

4. How does the judge deliver Cincinnatus' sentence?

5. What does the lawyer offer to Cincinnatus?

Short Essay Questions

1. What causes Cincinnatus to finally be caught?

2. What relatives does Marthe bring with her the first time she visits Cincinnatus in prison?

3. How does Emmie say goodbye to Cincinnatus?

4. How does Cincinnatus respond to Pierre's story of why he is in prison?

5. What does Cincinnatus at first mistake for a window?

6. Describe the librarian.

7. After telling his "joke," what does Pierre say about how Cincinnatus looks?

8. What memory of his wife does Cincinnatus recall in his writing?

9. What ring does Cincinnatus describe wearing in his memory from his childhood?

10. How does Marthe's father treat Cincinnatus?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss symbolism and metaphor in the novel.

1) What things are described as being off-center in the novel? What does this represent in the novel?

2) What does the spider represent in the novel? What does the moth that is almost fed to the spider represent?

3) What do nonnons represent? Why does Cecelia C. tell the story of nonnons?

4) Why does Cincinnatus take himself apart several times during the novel? What does this represent? What do some of the other absurd or surreal events in the novel represent?

5) What does the prison itself represent? Do the characters have symbolic or metaphoric meaning?

Essay Topic 2

Cincinnatus is unable to hide his difference because of his emotional reaction to Marthe's disloyalty, and during his imprisonment, one of his main concerns is seeing Marthe again. Discuss Marthe's role in the novel.

1) Why does Cincinnatus love Marthe? Why does he believe that he can make a human connection with her? Is Marthe in any way what Cincinnatus wants her to be?

2) Why does Marthe bring her whole family to her first meeting with Cincinnatus during his imprisonment? Why does she visit him a second time? What does her behavior at these visits say about Marthe's personality and character?

3) How does Marthe perceive Cincinnatus's crime and imprisonment?

Essay Topic 3

The novel revolves around Cincinnatus's persecution for a crime, but his crime is never clearly explained. Discuss the nature of Cincinnatus's crime.

1) What does "gnostic turpitude" mean? How does this phrase describe Cincinnatus' crime?

2) What does the episode in Cincinnatus's childhood when he walks in the air reveal about Cincinnatus' crime?

3) How do the other characters react to Cincinnatus' crime and what does this reveal about the nature of the crime? What is Cincinnatus's own attitude, and why won't he repent?

(see the answer keys)

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