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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. Where does Helen Jean live before she moves to Gallup?

2. What do the doctors say is the cause of battle fatigue?

3. Why are some of the cattles’ necks scraped?

4. What is the name of the fort that the medicine man’s grandfather did not want to have trouble with?

5. With what creature is Thought-Woman associated?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Betonie tell Tayo about change and trust?

2. How does Robert begin to break through to Tayo and why might Robert be a good person to talk to his nephew?

3. Where are Tayo and Rocky sent, what kind of problem does Tayo have there and what does Rocky do to try and help Tayo?

4. How do Josiah and the boys learn about cattle care?

5. How is Rocky different from Tayo and what does Rocky want to do when he is an adult?

6. What does Tayo tell Ku'oosh about the war and about the drought?

7. Where does Robert take Tayo at Ku'oosh’s suggestion and how does Tayo feel when he gets there? How does Tayo’s feelings change?

8. How does Josiah’s sister feel about Night Swan?

9. What does Tayo do with his memories of Night Swan and Josiah?

10. What does the woman tell Tayo when she sees him again and what is his response?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Often, authors will write about what they know, and sometimes knowing a little about the author makes the books more interesting.

Research and give a brief biographical sketch of Leslie Marmon Silko. Do you think there is always some of the author's own life in his/her novels? Why or why not? Give examples. Name one idea/concept you think may have been a part of the Silko's agenda. Analyze that idea throughout the book and discuss Silko's probable agenda concerning that idea.

Essay Topic 2

The world of the battlefield was the most hostile and threatening of all the experiences in his life. Some men seem to survive these horrors while moving on and making lives for themselves, while others are emotionally unable to cope, and Tayo was one of the latter.

How do you think Tayo’s early life might have affected his response to the battle field? Why might his reactions to battle be considered a weakness to some people? Why are his reactions not a weakness? Use examples from Ceremony to support your response.

Essay Topic 3

This writer, a Native American herself, is communicating a way her own people can adapt to the changes that have taken place and are taking place in their own world while hanging on to their own identity at the same time.

Discuss at least three ways which Silko advocates can help her people adapt to the changes in their culture while continuing to hold onto their own cultural identity. Use examples from Ceremony to support your response.

(see the answer keys)

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