View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who does Alfa think is attracted to him at the Rear?

2. Who is Alfa trying to avenge in Chapter XII?

3. At the end of Chapter XII, how does Alfa believe his fellow soldiers look at him?

4. How does Alfa quickly begin to feel about the German soldier he kills in Chapter XII?

5. What does Alfa admit to himself that he does in Chapter XII in order to try to get his revenge?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Alfa bring to the hospital with him, and why?

2. Why does Alfa suspect his father lets him be adopted by another family?

3. Why does Alfa suspect his father did not let him go with Penndo Ba when she left?

4. What did Alfa do to try to catch the person who killed his friend Jean-Baptiste?

5. What does Alfa come to believe about God's role in what happens in war in Part III?

6. What is the first thing Alfa draws for the doctor?

7. What happens to Alfa's father when Penndo Ba fails to return?

8. What does Alfa do to make sure no one finds his severed hands?

9. What is the relationship between Penndo Ba and Alfa's father like?

10. Why does Yoro Ba want to "give" Alfa's mother to his father in marriage?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why does Alfa rape Mademoiselle Francois, and what tragic series of events leads up to this act of violence? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 2

What are Alfa's feelings about his village, Gandiol, his experiences there coming of age, and his father? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

Why does Alfa feel that he owes his best friend Mademba deeply, and in the end of the novel, how does Alfa seem to fulfill what he sees as his debt or obligation to the deceased Mademba? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 652 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample