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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. Who does Eufrasia claim is in love with Camilo?

2. What does Eufrasia claim she could not help but do in her bed?

3. To whom is the final letter of the book addressed?

4. How does Eufrasia describe the way that the maid speaks?

5. What does Camilo say about modern art?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Reguel claim he foresaw a crime? How does he describe Camilo's character?

2. Why do the police show up at the boarding house? How does Mrs. Milagros deal with the intrusion?

3. How does Camilo's idealized mental version of Rosaura compare to who she is in reality?

4. Why do Mrs. Milagros' daughters take an interest in Rosaura's identification?

5. How does Elsa speak?

6. How does Eufrasia describe the relationship between the maid at the boarding house and Camilo?

7. How does Eufrasia claim that the boarding house maid reacts to Camilo's wedding?

8. How is imagery of the ocean used in Part I, Chapter 8?

9. How does Mrs. Milagros describe learning of a crime?

10. How does Reguel describe Mrs. Milagros and the other boarders?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Voice is an overarching technique throughout the text. Not only are the voices of the narrators contrasted, but there is some note of which characters have a voice. At various moments in the book, the fact that Camilo, Rosaura, and the maid don't speak is emphasized. Why do you believe these characters don't speak much? Why do you think that the author wanted to emphasize that point? How do you believe this shapes the text?

Essay Topic 2

Foreshadowing is used from the very beginning of the book, as mention is made that an investigation is happening, though the reader knows nothing of the crime or even the players involved. Describe two other ways in which foreshadowing and other ways of looking at time non-linearly contribute to the text.

Essay Topic 3

Solving the crime of who killed Rosaura is the pretext for all of the details in the text. Solving the mystery drives the text even before the reader is even aware of the nature of the crime. Describe the speculation of each of the characters on this crime, and finally answer the question of who killed Rosaura and why. Do you believe that this is an interesting or satisfactory resolution to the novel?

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