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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. What is Oskar's mother possessed with?

2. What does Oskar say he does to make it through his day?

3. What does Greff do in the cellar after creating his latest invention?

4. When Oskar asks Greff to teach him the alphabet, what does Greff tell Oskar to play with instead of the books?

5. What wakes Oskar up after he falls asleep in the mail room of the post office?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Oskar describe himself when he was born?

2. How does Oskar become the leader of the Dusters?

3. How does Oskar interpret the invitation of Jan Bronski's father to Kurt's baptism?

4. What was to social and economic situation in Danzig in 1938?

5. Did Oskar think his baptism was successful? Why or why not?

6. What was Oskar's mother's diet like after Easter?

7. Oskar spends a lot of time talking about his family history. One significant member of his family is Jan Bronski. How is Jan related to Oskar's mother and how does Oskar describe this character?

8. What was fizz powder used for and how was it used?

9. What does the midget troupe eat on their picnic?

10. What do Oskar's family try to get him to do after Bronski was taken by the soldiers?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

War is an underlying theme in this book. How does the author discuss the war? Does this description provide an adequate background for the story?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the use of irony with the underlying Christian theme and the Christian Nazis. How does Grass use irony to share his feelings about the war? Cite examples to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

What does Oskar's drum represent? Is it possible that Oskar affected so many people and events with his small toy drum?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 620 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample