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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. One time when Sombo's group passes another platoon in the woods, he recognizes that platoon's rice girl. Who is it?

2. After the tragedy, Arn goes to see the Khmer Rouge soldier boy who has told Arn and the other Little Fish that they are not real soldiers. What does he do before he goes to see this boy?

3. What happens the first time Arn and and another Little Fish go to drop grenades into the tanks of the Vietnamese soldiers?

4. The second time Arn joins the volleyball game, he plays skillfully and everyone claps. Why does he do so well at the game this time around?

5. Why does Sombo get mad when he sees Arn dragging his gun behind him due to its great weight?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the parting of Arn and Mek. What is its significance within the course of the narrative?

2. How does the white rabbit enter the narrative of the story and what is its significance?

3. Why does Arn turn over all of the dead bodies of the villagers to look into their faces?

4. The theme of fame arises once again when the leader with the white shorts notices Arn due to the attention he has gotten for his music and dancing, so he tells Arn to come to his house to entertain at his party. What message is being sent about fame in this scene?

5. What words does the dying lady in the village spit at Arn and why do her words hurt him so much?

6. Arn and Missus Gotobed, the headmistress of the Children's Center, become furious with Mr. Pond for his behavior on two separate occasions for two different reasons. How do those reasons differ?

7. What is the author's purpose for including Arn's comment that "now even the earth is our enemy"? (126)

8. At the start of his stay in the hospital, how does the author demonstrate that Arn has contracted Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder from his time under the rule of the Khmer Rouge?

9. When Arn determines that he has been away from his home village for two and a half years, how does he reach this conclusion?

10. Conditioning is the automatic response of one's body that happens over a period of time when one is subjected to repeated negative and/or positive reinforcement in order to facilitate a particular response. The soldiers tell Arn and Siv that he has a new job for them, lead them to a temple, make them watch as they murder the elderly prisoners there, and order Arn and Siv to urinate on the bodies of the dead and dying old men. Arn thinks that there is no way he'll be able to comply, but when he looks down, he sees that urine is pouring out of his body onto the dead men's heads. What is the author's purpose in including this incident?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Arn often refers to the subject of fame at different points within the novel. Trace these mentions, explain each instance's circumstances, and discuss the overall message the author sends about the subject of fame.

Essay Topic 2

The author chooses to represent Arn's voice using an authentic form of dialect used by non-native English speakers. Analyze how this choice affects the reader's understanding of his character, the feelings inspired in the reader about the wartime atrocities he witnesses, and how the theme of redemption is ultimately received by the reader by the end of the novel.

Essay Topic 3

Due to the horrific nature of the war in which Arn is forced to participate, he starts to show signs of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) fairly early on in the novel. Research the symptoms of PTSD, find instances of Arn displaying these symptoms, and discuss how the inclusion of such symptoms contributes to the author's message about war.

(see the answer keys)

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