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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. Where does Vinod remember that Suj's best friend attended a liberal arts college?

2. In Act 4, Chapter 1, what place does the town remind Ed of where he and Dee go to a restaurant?

3. In the Japanese reality show, how many men and women are given a fancy house to live in?

4. What does Masha's mother teach at a large Catholic college?

5. How long does the Actor asks to stay when he returns in Act 4, Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Masha feel about Karen's rapport with Nat?

2. What does VInod begin to feel when he is in the meadow reading in Act 4, Chapter 5?

3. What does Nat see and do when she wakes hearly in Act 3, Chapter 9?

4. How does Ed describe the awfulness of members of his family to Dee?

5. What trip do Masha and Nat take, and what do they do?

6. How does social media turn on Dee?

7. What suggestions do the Actor's publicist, agent, and manager have when social media turns on Dee?

8. What is the problem with the plumbing and what will it take to fix it?

9. How does everyone act after the Actor leaves?

10. In Act 3, Chapter 1, what does Senderovsky think about Nat and his parenting?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Actor frequently launches into soliloquies when he is talking. What is a soliloquy? How does the Actor use soliloquies when speaking? How are those soliloquies barriers to conversations?

Essay Topic 2

Metaphors and similes are figures of speech that are used to make comparisons between things. Metaphors seem to imply an equal comparison, while similes seem to imply a similarity between two things. Does Shteyngart use more metaphors or similes in Our Country Friends? How does the use of metaphors or similes help readers comprehend concepts? How does the use of metaphors or similes make the writing more interesting?

Essay Topic 3

Characters feel guilty that they are safe in the country while the virus is wreaking havoc in the city and around the country. How do the characters’ struggle with guilt? Why are they experiencing survivor’s guilt?

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