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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does the male narrator say has finally made him an African?
(a) The fact he is fleeing his homeland.
(b) Rowing a boat towards America.
(c) The sun beating down and constantly darkening his skin.
(d) Being one with the sea.

2. What does the first narrator do when Celianne goes into labor?
(a) Keeps bailing water out so the boat doesn't sink.
(b) Asks if anyone on the boat is a doctor.
(c) Helps her deliver the baby.
(d) Moves to the other end of the boat.

3. What is the male narrator afraid might attract sharks?
(a) Throwing possessions overboard.
(b) Throwing the dead baby in the water.
(c) Singing songs.
(d) Applying tar to patch holes in the boat.

4. Which of these statements is false?
(a) The passengers run out of food.
(b) The passengers have to throw all their possessions overboard.
(c) Celianne drowns with her baby.
(d) The male narrator helps Celianne deliver the baby.

5. What spirit does the male narrator say he has to throw his remaining possessions over to?
(a) Agwe, the spirit of the water.
(b) Zeus, the spirit of the sun.
(c) Gali, the spirit of hope.
(d) Vishnu, the spirit of the sky.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who said, "Maybe it's like you've always said. I imagine too much?"

2. What is used as the sail of the boat?

3. How many holes does the first narrator mention the passengers patching up?

4. Where does the radio pick up a broadcast from?

5. What does the male narrator remember about Miami?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the female narrator's family do to protect themselves against the soldiers? Why is this important?

2. At what point does the female narrator's opinion of her father change entirely? Who helps her come to understand his actions?

3. Where is the line drawn in what is decent and what is not in the boat? What bodily functions, though unavoidable, are in a way shunned or cause the passengers unwonted embarrassment or vulnerability?

4. What happened to the young man on the boat the first time he tried to sail to Miami?

5. What does the male narrator ponder regarding gender?

6. What does the female narrator do in a "last resort" way to preserve hope after the black butterflies come? Does it work?

7. What is the male narrator's last memory of his mother? How do you think this affects him?

8. Describe the old man on the boat.

9. Describe the internal conflict of humanity vs. survival on the boat. What do the passengers choose to overlook? As their situation becomes more dire, what conflicts arise between them?

10. Why is the first narrator happy there are no children on board?

(see the answer keys)

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