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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. At what age was Yasin removed from his father's house?

2. What is the mock profession Ahmad's friends put on before leaving him in Chapter 16?

3. What does Khadija demand a confession of from Aisha in addition to never watching the policeman again?

4. What is the name of the gathering that all of Ahmad's family has at sunset except for him?

5. What does Yasin tell his mother is the only way he will love her again when he visits her for the first time in the book?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Fahmy do while sitting on a roof with Kamal in Chapter 10?

2. What happens to Amina after her broken collarbone has healed?

3. How is Kamal's visit to Maryam in Chapter 21 described?

4. How are the three visitors that come to Ahmad's home described?

5. What does Amina help her husband with when he comes home drunk at midnight every night?

6. How does Ahmad react to Shaykh Mutawalli's claim that he is an adulterer in Chapter 7?

7. How are Kamal's "story hungry" actions described in Chapter 9?

8. How does Ahmad react to Fahmy's request to marry Maryam?

9. What is the nature of Khadija and Aisha's conversation regarding marriage in Chapter 5?

10. How is Yasin and Amina's visit to the al-Husayn shrine described?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The concept of marriage is one subject that is discussed by numerous characters throughout the book, each with his/her own ideas of what it represents.

Part 1.) How do characters like Aisha and Khadija feel about the notion of marriage?

Part 2.) What reasons does Ahmad have for not allowing his children to be married when they wish?

Part 3.) What is telling about the nature of marriage in the book based on Yasin's experience?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the role fate plays in the lives of Ahmad's children who refuse to argue with his rules, especially about marriage. What is telling of Aisha based on her decision to leave being married up to fate?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the concept of submission in the book, notably through Ahmad and Amina's relationship. What might Amina feel that submitting to her husband would represent in terms of her culture and social beliefs?

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