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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where is Chid at the end of Section 30?

2. What accounts for the intensely hot weather in Section 25?

3. What is learned about Chid's separation from Ritu on her pilgrimage when he returns to the narrator's room without her?

4. What is noticeable about the beggar woman that the narrator notices and ends up helping?

5. How are Olivia's visits to the palace affected after she tells the Nawab that she is pregnant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The amount of freedom and choice varies greatly among the characters in Heat and Dust. Compare and contrast how each set of characters below is trapped by, wastes or uses their given freedom in the story.

1) Douglas and the Nawab.

2) Olivia and the Narrator.

3) Chid and Ritu.

Essay Topic 2

The power to change one's self and transform one's circumstances is a theme in Heat and Dust.

1) Explain how the dual stories of Olivia and the narrator reflect this theme.

2) Discuss the impact of setting and nature on a personal transformation in the story.

3) What one character transformation that did NOT occur in the story could have changed the entire course of the novel? Explain your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Consider the role of faith in Heat and Dust. Select one of the questions to analyze.

1) How does the narrator's faith or lack of faith impact her experiences and expectations in this story?

2) How does the narrator's faith in herself or in others change the direction of the novel at an important point or points?

3) Which character in the story has the strongest faith? The weakest?

(see the answer keys)

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