View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does the woman lead Sharpe to his men?

2. Who does Sharpe take as a hostage?

3. Who is Cesar Moreno?

4. How is the fighting between the Spanish peasants and the French?

5. To whom is Sharpe ordered to apologize?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why are Sharpe's men angry and sad as they enter the village?

2. Where and who are the Provosts and what is their purpose?

3. How does Sharpe threaten El Catolico's men?

4. How do Harper and Sharpe capture an enemy lancer, and how does Teresa help them escape from the rest of the lancers?

5. Who does not agree with most of the others, but why is that not obvious?

6. What happens to Kearsey as he is returning to Sharpe's company?

7. Who are discussing Sharpe's state of mind?

8. Who is holding the gold and what does Kearsey know about the man and the situation?

9. Where do the men of Sharpe's company go?

10. Who is Michael Hogan and what does he tell Sharpe about Sharpe's mission?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many events that happen in Sharpe's gold are foreshadowed by previous events and/or signs. Discuss the following:

1. Define the literary term "foreshadow."

2. Why would an author use foreshadowing? Do you think it adds or detracts from your experience as a reader? Explain.

3. Trace and analyze five instances of foreshadowing in Sharpe's Gold. Match up what is mentioned earlier and what it foreshadows. Did you guess that each instance of foreshadowing was a "heads up" of something to come? Why or why not.

Essay Topic 2

Most protagonists are a mixture of admirable traits and character flaws, and Richard Sharpe is no exception. Sharpe's legendary powers of military strategy is juxtaposed with his reputation as a womanizer. Discuss the following:

1. Trace and analyze situations when Sharpe demonstrates his prodigious powers of military strategy. Give specific examples to illustrate your analysis.

2. Trace and analyze Sharpe's character flaws offering specific examples of these flaws in your discussion.

3. Discuss how you think Sharpe's admirable traits helped him obtain a high rank in the military despite his background as a child. Have his flaws impacted his career at all? Do any of those under his command seem to notice these flaws? Who? How does the reader know this?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss one of the following:

1. Define irony in literary terms. Discuss the irony of the situation when Sharpe's men think he is torturing Teresa when he is involved with her romantically.

2. Define symbolism in literary terms. Discuss the use and meaning of five symbols you choose to analyze from Sharpe's Gold. What do they symbolize? Is the symbolism obvious? Effective? Does the symbolism contribute to the enjoyment of reading?

3. Discuss five literary devices that occur in Sharpe's Gold and how they are used. Are they effective? Do they add or detract from the reading of the book? Why or why not. Some possible techniques: Allusion, connotation, denouement, dialogue, flashback, figurative language, motif, metaphor, narrator, point of view, simile, mood, and puns.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,197 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample