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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. In what city was the attorney's office which helped Balakian's grandmother file the compensation claim?

2. What Ivy League university was involved in many of the disputes about Turkish denial of the genocide?

3. In his discussion of his Aunt Anna's education, what did Balakian say was the percentage of female PhD's in the early 1940s?

4. What city managed to protect itself from Turkish invaders in the 17th century, thereby stopping the expansion of Ottoman power throughout Western Europe?

5. How old was Aunt Gladys when the deportations began?

Short Essay Questions

1. How has Turkey's denial of the genocide affected its development as a modern nation?

2. What was significant about the murder of 250 Armenian intellectuals on the eve of the genocide and what was significant about Bishop Balakian's survival?

3. What was Nafina's reaction to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor?

4. How did the Turks use the geography of the land to make it easier to kill Armenians?

5. What did Dovey mean when she said that Turkish culture was theft?

6. How did Balakian feel about claims that the Turkish denials fall under free speech?

7. Why did Balakian eventually come to see his family's silence about the genocide as a gift?

8. Why were the orders for deportation of all Armenians into the Syrian desert the equivalent of a death sentence?

9. Why was Balakian surprised the Syrian government suppressed published works about the Armenian genocide?

10. Why did the Armenians form reform movements under Ottoman rule during the 1890s?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Balakian's grandmother initially sought compensation from the Turkish government for her family's sufferings. How important is compensation to the victims of state-sponsored terror? Can any compensation be sufficient or does the compensation have a deeper, more symbolic meaning? Did the grandmother's filing of the documents help her process the events? Can there ever be sufficient compensation for the Armenian people, especially almost a century after the genocide?

Essay Topic 2

Turkish government officials and their supporters have claimed that the denial of the genocide is a form of protected free speech. Do you believe that? Can speech that denies a central historical truth be protected under free speech statutes? Does this denial make it more difficult for Armenians to exercise their own freedom of speech to publicize the genocide? Does the granting of free speech rights mean that all positions must be treated as legitimate sides in a debate?

Essay Topic 3

Balakian's grandfather Diran was a physician who served during the genocide and was required at times to treat Turkish soldiers. He did so knowing that many of these soldiers were likely to return to the front to kill more Armenians. Write an essay exploring how he was able to deal with this situation. Did knowing what these men were doing impact his ability to follow the Hippocratic Oath? Why did he treat the Turkish soldiers?

(see the answer keys)

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