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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 was El Chespiro?

2. With which of his family members did Reymundo Barreda Maruri Sr. travel?

3. What country did the walkers leave during their border crossing?

4. Who processed the paperwork of the Yuma 14?

5. According to Urrea, what is the only thing Mexico does to prevent walkers from crossing the border in Sasabe?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the banzai run?

2. According to Urrea, what was the most scandalous item provided in the survival kits that the Mexican government created for walkers?

3. Why do some guides feed their walkers diet pills?

4. Why were the walkers hoping to encounter Border Patrol agents, even though they were crossing without authorization?

5. Who was Melchior Diaz?

6. How does the sign warning travelers in Sasabe describe the Coyotes?

7. Who is Ken Smith?

8. What condition were the bodies of the Yuma 14 in when they were found?

9. How does Urrea characterize the relationship between Border Patrol agents and politicians?

10. What were economic conditions like when the Yuma 14 lived in Veracruz?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Economic forces drive and support many of the events described over the course of the Devil's Highway and Urrea goes into some detail describing them. Write a paper analyzing Urrea's presentation of the significance of these forces. Use details from the text to describe the economic influences at play, interpret Urrea's analysis, and respond with your own critique or elaboration upon Urrea's thinking.

Essay Topic 2

The struggle of Reymundos Sr. and Jr. is given significant prominence in The Devil's Highway compared to many of the other walkers, both living and dead. Write an essay exploring how these individuals are characterized and the tone that Urrea achieves when describing them. Conclude by explaining how this characterization and tone influence the reader's perceptions of the walkers as a group.

Essay Topic 3

The journey of the Wellton 26 was undertaken entirely by people identified within the text as male. Write an essay analyzing the role that gender plays in Urrea's depiction of this deadly crossing. Use evidence from the text and any outside research you may require to analyze how codes of masculinity influence the walkers' motives, belief, or behavior.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 646 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample