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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. What happens the first time the narrator speaks to translate at the trial of the former president?

2. What did Anton's attackers take from him?

3. What does the narrator say when Anton asks her if she bought anything in his shop?

4. Where do the translators sit during the trials at the Court?

5. Who goes on maternity leave in Chapter 13?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 9, what startles the narrator at work?

2. How does the narrator feel when she sees Kees in the courtroom in Chapter 8?

3. What is one global issue Eline tells the narrator she is particularly worried about?

4. In Chapter 9, why does the narrator come to understand the former president asks for her specifically?

5. In Chapter 10, what does Kees say about Adriaan that unsettles the narrator?

6. What do the former president's supporters do in the courtroom in Chapter 8?

7. Who does Jana introduce the narrator to in Chapter 10, and why?

8. How does Adriaan respond to the narrator's questions about his trip to Lisbon?

9. What does Amina tell the narrator is Kees's reputation?

10. What does Robert tell the narrator about how she should think about the trials she works on?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

When and how does the narrator begin to differentiate between herself and her colleagues who are translators at The Hague? What does she begin to realize about the nature of the work during the former president's trial? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 2

How does the narrator react to the young woman who acts as a witness to the former president's crimes? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

How does the narrator's conversation with her mother from the dunes at the end of the novel seem to affect the narrator's sense of place, purpose, and memory? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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