Think you’ve got your head wrapped around Bel Canto? Put your knowledge to
the test. Good luck — the Stickman is counting on you!
Q. Roxane Coss is the character who most dramatically symbolizes the power of music. Who else is kinda musical?
Carmen and Beatriz
Cesar and Kato
The Phantom of the Opera
Ruben and Enrique Iglesias
Q. Which characters are especially strong examples of what it means to be a great listener to music or appreciator of art?
Ruben Iglesias and Oscar Mendoza
Tom Cruise, trying to foil the bad guys in the opera house
General Benjamin and Beatriz
Mr. Hosokawa, Father Arguedas, and Fyodorov
Q. What might soccer symbolize by the end of the book?
That the terrorists and the hostages have become a community of sorts
That sports are better than opera
That General Benjamin is a kick-butt sports league manager
That the government and the terrorists are at a stalemate
Q. If Gen has a symbolic role, what might he be symbolizing?
The risks of a translation career—yikes, does he have some tough days!
The value of painting
The Japanese experience of education in South America
The power of language
Q. Why might opera be a great symbol for art in general in this book?
Opera is subtle and in the background, just like art in this book
It's especially popular in the unnamed country where the book takes place
Opera's got it all: glorious music, epic feats of singing strength, and major melodrama—it's like art on quintuple espresso
Who can resist a four-hour serenade from people in Viking armor?