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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do the visitors say they have heard about Ikem?

2. Who do political leaders always claim to be working for, according to Ikem?

3. What does Ikem say when asked about plans to put the President's image on the national currency?

4. What shocking news do the travelers hear toward the end of Chapter 17?

5. What shocking news is given over the radio at the end of Chapter 11?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The President, Sam, is not presented as a one-dimensional tyrant. Rather, he is a complex character with many positive and negative qualities. Write an essay exploring the development of this complex character.

1) What picture do we get of the President in Chapter 1? What are the negative traits of the President? What does Chris admit is a positive trait?

2) What insight do we gain about the President from his point of view in Chapter 2?

3) What is Sam like as a younger man, according to Mad Medico?

4) How, according to Ikem, does Sam change after coming to power? In what sense is he like an actor playing a part?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the use of proverbs and folk tales in the novel.

1) How do the proverbs and folk tales provide a counterpoint to "Western" knowledge?

2) Choose one or more of the proverbs or folk tales to analyze and show how it relates to a major theme of the novel.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about the use of West African Pidgin dialect in the dialogue.

1) Who uses the dialect? Why do some characters use it all the time while others switch back and forth?

2) What attitude is shown toward the dialect by various characters? For instance, consider how Ikem talks "deliberately over the head" of Elewa, and how Emmanuel speaks Pidgin to Adamma on the bus.

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