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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. In Scene Three, when discussing art, what does Emily say Islam is still connected to?

2. How does Amir justify his feelings about 9/11?

3. When does Emily say western art turned away from things that are bigger than themselves, to focus on individualism?

4. What is the only world Amir say the Quran makes sense in?

5. Who calls Amir just as Emily is trying to defuse a tense conversation about racial profiling in Scene Three?

Short Essay Questions

1. What knife does Jory stick into Amir on her way out the door?

2. How does Emily compare the Renaissance in the West and Islamic culture?

3. What has happened in the intervening time between Scenes 3 and 4?

4. What is the meaning of the play’s title, in light of this final confrontation between Amir and Abe?

5. What historical circumstance complicates the question of Amir’s nationality?

6. What grounds has Akhtar left the audience, by the end of the play, for feeling that there is a path to virtue and integrity?

7. What is the significance of Amir’s display of contempt for Isaac, when they are arguing at the end of Scene 3?

8. What happened at work that made Amir forget to get wine?

9. What causes Amir to hit Emily?

10. What advice does Amir give Abe about how he expresses his political views, and what is Abe’s response?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Disgraced is a play that assumes a huge amount of back story and cultural awareness. What are the main historical/cultural narratives Akhtar refers to, and how does he make them personal to the characters? Are these characters proxies for a cultural battle? Are they victims of a larger battle between people’s cultural assumptions? Does anyone achieve any freedom from those assumptions, in the end?

Essay Topic 2

Are Amir and Emily tragic figures? What do they lose, and why do they lose it? How do they draw our sympathies out? What new awareness do they arrive at in the end? What new awareness do they bring the audience to?

Essay Topic 3

Where is the climax of this book? Are there different climaxes? What questions does each climax resolve? What questions does each climax leave unanswered?

(see the answer keys)

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