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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 did a German doctor say Ben's heart was as black as?

2. Who does Ben describe as a salt-water girl?

3. What is the title of the story in this section?

4. What is the name of the island Mike travels to?

5. What does Jonathan Iwegbu call his luck?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Mr. and Mrs. Emneike react when they hear Vera has tried to poison their child?

2. Why does Jonathan think he has been blessed?

3. Describe the argument between Martha and Mrs. Emenike?

4. Why does Martha decide against punishing Vera?

5. Why is Mr. Emenike angry at the new socialism in Nigeria?

6. Why does Ben regret sleeping with Mami Wota?

7. What does the story say about Cletus' character?

8. How does Mr. Emenike initially prove a blessing for Vera?

9. What does Michael find out about the path he attempts to block?

10. In what way does Ben show great self control?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Vera's upbringing effect her decisions in the novel? How will Vera's upbringing effect her in the future? How can she change her situation?

Essay Topic 2

What does the stories in the book state about post colonial Nigeria? How much do the students think these problems can be attributed to colonialism?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the author's writing style. How would you describe the author's prose style? What kind of vocabulary does he use? What meaning does the author's style give to the story?

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This section contains 787 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample