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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. Which statement best describes Margaret Jarvis’ relationship with Arthur compared to James’?

2. Why is there little public interest in Absalom’s murder trial?

3. What American president did Arthur Jarvis greatly admire?

4. As James reads Arthur’s papers, what claim does his son make that offends him?

5. How does Kumalo’s wife react to the addition of Absalom’s wife and Gertrude’s child to the family?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the final meeting between Stephen and John Kumalo.

2. Compare and contrast the ways the novel ends “happily” versus the way it ends “unhappily.”

3. Briefly describe the relationship between James and Arthur Jarvis. How does it differ from Arthur’s relationship with his mother?

4. What happens to Gertrude at a church meeting at Msimangu’s mission? What does she do afterward?

5. Describe how Napoleon Letsitsi comes to be in Ndotsheni.

6. What does Absalom give as his defense for owning a gun when the Judge asks him about it?

7. Briefly summarize Arthur Jarvis’s argument about the responsibility of whites to blacks in the papers James Jarvis reads.

8. Compare and contrast the lifestyles of James Jarvis and Stephen Kumalo living so close to each other in the Natal province.

9. Describe the incident Kumalo tells his friend about as a way of explaining his idea that James Jarvis is a compassionate man.

10. After reading more of his son’s papers, why does James Jarvis leave through the front of the house rather than walking past the blood-stained floor again?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze and discuss the character of Absalom in Cry, the Beloved Country. What is Absalom's place in the plot of the story? What is Absalom accused of? What is the ruling in his case?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the structure of the novel. How do the sections that step out of the main plot serve the story? How and why does the author occasionally use the first person (“we” and “us”) and second person (“you”)? How do rhetorical devices like repetition and metaphor enhance the narrative? Do you think these techniques are effective in drawing the reader more deeply and personally into the world of the novel? Why or why not? Be sure to support your argument with examples from the text.

Essay Topic 3

What do the gold mines symbolize in Cry, the Beloved Country. To what theme do the gold mines most relate? How are the gold mines perceived by the wealthy white elite? How are they perceived by the oppressed blacks?

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