Waiting for Snow in Havana Quiz

Waiting for Snow in Havana - Quiz

1.List the three conflicts and describe them.
a.Fidel Castro and his men overthrow Batista There is a lot of chaos in Cuba and living conditions are very dangerous. Carlos and his family as well as everyone in Cuba are very scared and concerned with this situation.
b.Disagreements between Carlos’ Parents. Carlos’ parents are both very scared with this situation but they disagree in terms of what they want to do with their children. His mom wants to take them to the United States and his father wants them to stay in Cuba
c.In the United States Carlos and his broth are in an orphanage. They constantly remember their happy childhood in Cuba and are having a difficult time adapting in the U.S.
2.List and describe 3 Motifs.
a.The Lizards – Lizards have followed Carlos throughout his childhood, and they become very symbolic. As a child Carlos hates these lizards but later on learns that beneath their ugly skin there is nothing bad about them, and they remind him of his happy childhood in Cuba.
b.Jesus – Jesus constantly appears in Carlos’ dreams. He relates many incidents and people to Jesus, and believes that Jesus is trying to deliver a message.
c.Sunset – Carlos talks about the sunset many times. He says that the sunset in Cuba is more beautiful than the sunset in the U.S because it has a brighter and more orange/tangerine color.
3.Describe one major and one minor theme
a.Major Theme: Struggle for survival. Carlos and his family constantly have to struggle with the bad situation in Cuba. This struggle follows Carlos and his family throughout the whole book.
b.Minor Theme: Sexual Harassment – Carlos has a couple of experiences where he is sexually harassed or molested (the guy in the train, Ernesto,…)
4.Describe his childhood memories:
a.He remembers his uncle’s backyard, they way it was so colorful, full of animals and plants, and the experience he had with the monkey.
b.He remembers going to a classmate’s birthday party. The classmate’s house was the biggest house he had ever seen, and he was impressed with this house and with the party favors.
c.He remembers playing with his friends, puling fruits off trees and throwing them at each other until they were covered all over with fruit juice.
5.Describe the theme of forgiveness and or humor:
Humor is a reoccurring theme in this book. As Carlos describes many of his experiences as a child, he expresses them with a humorous tone. For example, Carlos describes the first time he ever drank. He drank too much and got drunk, and has no idea what is going on.
Forgiveness is also a very important theme in this book. Even with all the chaos that has happened in his life, Carlos must learn to forgive Fidel. This theme is also very important between Carlos and his father, Louis. Carlos does not want to be angry with his father whom he never saw after he left Cuba. He has many good memories with him. This theme includes forgiving his father, as well as being forgiven by him. Towards the end of the book, in his dreams, his father visits him and tells him that he forgives him for all the bad thoughts Carlos has, had, or will have of him.