Mr. Coward and Mr. Brazil: 8th Grade English

Maus Study Questions: Chapter 3: "Prisoner of War" (20 points total)

  1. Why does Vladek leave Anja and Richieu?  a) he was in the Polish Reserves Army.  b) he received a draft notice to report for duty.  c) Germany is ready to invade Poland.  d) all of these.

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  2. Why doesn't Vladek's father want Vladek to join the army?  a) he did not want any of his sons to join the army.  b) he had pulled out 14 of his own teeth in order to avoid the army.  c) When Vladek's father was young, Polish people were drafted into the Russian Army, where they had to serve for twenty-five years, in Siberia.  d) all of the above.

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  3. As a soldier, Vladek fights in one battle. What does he do?  a) gets in trouble for having cold gun. b) gets in trouble for having warm gun. c) shoots a "tree." d) gets captured. e) all of these.

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  4. On page 51, how does the German officer know that Vladek is not used to physical labor?

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  5. What kind of work does Vladek do for the Germans?

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  6. ( T / F ) Vladek is lazy: he works as little as he possibly can?

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  7. How often does "Parshas Truma" occur?

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  8. (3) List 3 important events in Vladek's life, which happened during a "Parshas Truma" week.

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  9. In the "Parshas Truma" episode on pages 57 to 59, we see an example of Vladek's sense of faith and fate.  Later in the story, we will see and hear a similar story about Vladek's "number". We see that Vladek is being superstitious.  Is this necessarily a bad thing? Support your choice.

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  10. Where is Sosnowiec located?  a) in the Reich.  b) in the Protectorate.  c) in the part

    11. of Poland which used to be part of Germany.  d) all of the above.  e) both a and c.
     
  11. Why does the Orbach family help Vladek? (support your opinion with references to the text).

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  12. When a person pretends to belong to a different race or nationality, we say they are trying

    13. to "pass". Why is Vladek able to "pass" as a non-Jewish Pole (Polish person)?
     
  13. ( T / F ) Vladek actually wears a "Polish" mask on the train.

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  14. (2) On page 65, we hear about Vladek's father being humiliated by German soldiers.

    15. Why did the Germans act that way?  What motivations might the Germans have had?
     
  15. (3) What happens to Artie's coat?  What motivates Vladek?  Why is Artie upset?