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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. When was governor's house built?

2. When did Michael's ancestor first arrive in Ceylon?

3. In what region of Ceylon was Jaffna located?

4. When did Mervyn's parents discover he had not passed the entrance exams for the university?

5. On page 79, where was the house located that Michael was sitting in?

Short Essay Questions

1. What could Michael see and hear in his friend's house when he awoke from a dream?

2. What transpired when Simon Ondaatje and his brothers would gather on Sunday mornings?

3. What did Michael dream on page 27?

4. In the introduction to Chapter 1, what nightmare did Michael experience?

5. What did Lalla look like when she was at the racetrack?

6. Describe the kabaragoya Michael and the children found dead on the beach.

7. How did Michael eat the curry he had for lunch at the old governor's home?

8. When did Michael's parents' generation grow up?

9. What did Mervyn use at Rock Hill to deter the snakes?

10. What was Mervyn like when his dipsomania would recur?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Lalla and Rene de Saram were friends who were neighbors and became widows. Compare Lalla and Rene.

Essay Topic 2

Michael described his paternal grandfather and his uncle. Compare Philip Ondaatje and Aelian Ondaatje.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how and why Michael decided to visit Ceylon.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 776 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample