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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How much time does John say he has before going away to school at the start of the story?
(a) One month.
(b) 6 months.
(c) 8 weeks.
(d) One week.

2. What words are used to describe the way John's father treats his son, which his wife "was never blind to" (57)?
(a) Unconditional love.
(b) Excessive leniency.
(c) Tough love.
(d) Moral torture.

3. What does John fear as he sits before his father at the start of the story?
(a) He fears his father lost his job.
(b) He fears his father is going to tell him he is moving out.
(c) He fears his father is going to tell him he cannot go away to school.
(d) He fears his father knows his secret.

4. Why does John's mother wonder if his father's treatment of him stems from resentment?
(a) Because he had wanted a daughter.
(b) Because John like his mother better.
(c) Because he never wanted a child.
(d) Because John was born out of sin.

5. What is John's father's occupation?
(a) Doctor.
(b) Preacher.
(c) Farmer.
(d) Teacher.

6. What word does John's mother use to describe how he treats his son?
(a) Admonish.
(b) Antagonize.
(c) Persecute.
(d) Threaten.

7. Who is the author of "Meeting in the Dark"?
(a) Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o.
(b) Ngũgĩ Thomas.
(c) John Thiong'o.
(d) Thiong'o Achibe.

8. Why does John's father ask him what he has done after asking him to sit at the start of the story?
(a) John's mother told him he had gotten into trouble.
(b) John's father heard a rumor about him in town.
(c) John had told his father they needed to talk.
(d) John will not look at him.

9. What does John's father hope to protect his son from?
(a) Danger.
(b) Disease.
(c) Evil influences.
(d) Not getting a good education.

10. What does John's father feel his wife made him do long ago, and hopes his son does not do the same thing?
(a) Get a low-paying job.
(b) Move.
(c) Sin.
(d) Quit school.

11. What does John's father think as he pauses before responding after his wife asks him why he treats John the way he does?
(a) She has a point.
(b) I am too easy on him.
(c) She is just as hard on him.
(d) Women will never understand.

12. Where did John's parent live when John was very young?
(a) Nairobi.
(b) Mombasa.
(c) Fort Hall.
(d) Limuru.

13. What does John's father ask him, which John feels he has told his father many times?
(a) John's father asks him if he did his homework.
(b) John's father asks him if he cleaned his hut.
(c) John's father asks him if he got good grades this term.
(d) John's father asks him when his journey is.

14. What is the main character's name?
(a) Paul.
(b) Steven.
(c) Joseph.
(d) John.

15. What does John's father call his wife?
(a) Sister.
(b) Love.
(c) Susana.
(d) Susie-dear.

Short Answer Questions

1. What adjectives are used to describe John's father as he walks down the street at the start of the story?

2. Where is the main character standing as he watches his father walk down the street at the start of the story?

3. Where does John's father tell him they will go the next day when they first speak at the start of the story?

4. What is John's feeling toward his father?

5. What does John's father do after his wife shouts at him in a tone she has never used before?

(see the answer keys)

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