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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 of the following does Olanna note spreads across the floor of the train she takes back to Nsukka after the second coup?

2. In which of the following does Richard note having lived?

3. Which of the following does Olanna see the night of her return to Nsukka following the second coup?

4. By which of the following names does Ugwu’s sexual partner call hum during their assignations?

5. To which of the following is Nzeogwu reported to have traveled?

Short Essay Questions

1. How are Richard’s university-provided accommodations described?

2. How does Madu report having escaped the second coup?

3. In what way does Richard disappoint the Igbo elder with whom he discusses ancient bronze pots?

4. What does Olanna report to Odenigbo upon her return to Nsukka after the second coup?

5. How are Olanna’s eyes depicted as she flees back to Nsukka after the second coup?

6. What reasons does Olanna give for her parents fleeing overseas after the initial coup?

7. How does Ugwu’s aunt describe a refrigerator to him?

8. To what does Ugwu ascribe his upset stomach when he visits his parents’ home?

9. How does Richard disappoint the family of the slain customs officer he visits?

10. What things does Olanna note having left behind in Nsukka when she evacuates to Abba?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Repeatedly in Half of A Yellow Sun, Ugwu makes particular note of what he serves to whom at dinner and drinks. For one such character, explain the significance of the meal and drink service; that is, what does it indicate about that character that Ugwu focuses on the details of the table for him or her, and how does the text support the indication?

Essay Topic 2

To what extent does the epigraph from Achebe at the beginning of Half of A Yellow Sun suggest the theme of the book? How does it do so?

Essay Topic 3

Consider the poem Ugwu notes having memorized in Chapter 4:

I can’t forget that I’m bereft
Of all the pleasant sights they see,
Which the Piper also promised me.
For he led us, he said, to a joyous land,
Joining the town and just at hand,
Where waters rushed and fruit trees grew,
And flowers put forth a fairer hue,
And everything was strange and new. (105-06)

What resonance does the poem have in its context in the novel? How does that resonance emerge?

(see the answer keys)

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