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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. Who is the author of Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism?

2. Where is Ibadan University located?

3. What is the central backdrop of Caitaani mũtharaba-Inĩ?

4. Where was Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o detained?

5. Who is the author of Out of Africa?

Short Essay Questions

1. What reasons does the author give for Africans studying Caribbean and Afro-American literature?

2. What were the three broad categories of literature available to African children described by the author in Chapter 4, Part III?

3. How was written language largely developed in Africa?

4. What works did the author assign to his students to read just before his arrest? Why?

5. How does the author describe the narrative form of A Grain of Wheat?

6. What does the author mean when he refers to a person's philosophic base of relevance?

7. What questions did the author face regarding linear versus nonlinear plot development when writing Caitaani mũtharaba-Inĩ?

8. What does the author remark about Franz Josef Strauss's official visit to the Independent Republic of Togo in Chapter 3, Part VII?

9. What does the author say about critical reception of literature in Chapter 3, Part IX?

10. How did the author go about obtaining the basic necessities for writing while in prison?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the author's metaphor of the seven blind men and the elephant. What aspect of literature is demonstrated through this metaphor? What other examples does the author give to make his point? How does this story relate to the concepts of class and philosophical bases?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the relationships between human experience, culture, and perceptions of reality. What role does language play as a means of communication and as a carrier of culture? What are the different subcategories of language as a means of communication and as a carrier of culture? How are culture and communication related to one another?

Essay Topic 3

What relationship between the peasantry and the languages of Africa does the author describe in the book? How is the peasant's relationship to his native tongue different than that of the petty-bourgeoisie? How does language change as a result of this relationship?

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