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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. Why would Tom Richardson and John McClure be able to leave under a flag of surrender?

2. What thought comforts David Becker during the terrifying flight?

3. How does Nuri Salameh keep his supervisor from questioning his presence in the tail of the aircraft after his shift?

4. What does Ahmed Rish guarantee Jacob Hausner and Benjamin Dobkin?

5. Who does Jacob Hausner say is the most important speaker in the group meeting?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Chaim Mazar hope that Isaac Burg, Benjamin Dobkin, and Miriam Bernstein are all dead?

2. As an Algerian in France, Nuri Salameh is a "stranger in a strange land." Do you think that situation makes a difference in his decision to obey Ahmed Rish and plant the bomb on the aircraft?

3. What other military group had Teddy Laskov belonged to before he fought for Israel, and why had he left it?

4. As Benjamin Dobkin watches the attackers advance, he thinks that he would give them a low grade on tactics. What do they do wrong?

5. Why does Abdel Majid Jabari tell Ibrahim Ali Arif that he is a very self-centered man?

6. What similarities do the defenders see between themselves and those at Masada?

7. How do the Israelis know that there had to be a spy working inside Israel to effect the capture of the Concorde?

8. What reputation do the Jews have regarding terrorism and how is it affecting the present situation?

9. Why does Jacob Hausner say that he will help find medications that can kill a person if taken in overdose for Benjamin Dobkin?

10. How does Benjamin Dobkin react to Jacob Hausner's assumption of leadership within the defenders?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The kheffiyah (keffiyah) plays an important role in this story, as it both identifies and disguises characters. Write an essay explaining how an article of clothing can carry such weight of identity. Use scenes from the story in which characters either identify or disguise themselves to make your point.

Essay Topic 2

Miriam Bernstein is deeply committed to the peace process and affected by the early events that took her family from her. In your essay, describe the changes that the events in the story have caused to take place in Miriam Bernstein.

Essay Topic 3

Transformation is a theme in this story. Many characters undergo significant changes. In your essay, select two characters (apart from Jacob Hausner and Miriam Bernstein) who are not the same in the return flight as they were when the story began. Discuss the causes and effects of the changes they have undergone.

(see the answer keys)

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