View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Behrani respond when passersby stare at him?

2. How does Behrani learn that Kathy came to the house?

3. How does Connie Walsh plan to help Kathy?

4. When Lester arrives at the house, what law does he tell Behrani he has broken?

5. Why is Kathy being evicted from her house?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to Kathy's Enemy Voice the last time she spends time with a married man?

2. Why is Nadereh happier in the little house than she had been in the expensive apartment?

3. What is the BEAST that Kathy has been taught to avoid?

4. What happens to Behrani's cousin Jasmeen, and why is he unable to forget it?

5. Why does Lester believe Behrani deserves to be punished by him?

6. What does Esmail advise his father to do after Lester's threatening visit?

7. What do you make of Kathy's stealing the clothing and makeup she wears to visit Nadereh?

8. What is Kathy's intention in calling her brother Frank, and why doesn't she do as she intended?

9. Why does Kathy feel superior to the everyday people she sees on the street?

10. Why does Behrani regret that he will soon sell the house?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Kathy wears Nick's sunglasses and clothing stolen from her employer, drives a car her brother gave her, and uses Lester's gun. She allows other people to buy things for her and to take on her problems. What does this tell you about her attitude toward possessions? What do these things tell you about her attitudes toward other people? Do you think she sees them as nothing more than resources - Nick as a sperm donor, Lester as a protector, Frank as a rescuer? Does she care for anyone else? Why do you think this is important to the story?

Essay Topic 2

One definition of addiction is behavior that we continue even when we get negative consequences or when we know our actions are bad for us. When Kathy is waiting for something to happen, rather than taking action, she watches movies back to back, often without remembering what she has watched. Are movies another addiction for her? Can things that are not chemical be addictive? List Kathy's addictions and discuss the effect they have on her life.

Essay Topic 3

The breaking of promises is a significant theme in this story. Behrani, Kathy, and Lester all make vows and break them. Choose one of the three characters. Analyze the promises they make and their motivation for breaking those promises. For example, the HALT advice for addicts is useful, but ignored by Kathy. How might the story have been different if she and/or Lester had followed the HALT prescription?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 909 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample