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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 Chapter 7 take place?

2. What kind of store does Yasin pass by on the way to his mother's that brings painful recollections?

3. Whose shrine does Yasin convince someone to go to in Chapter 27?

4. What handicap does Amina's mother have?

5. What is Yasin's mother's name?

Short Essay Questions

1. How are Ahmad's actions at a party where he hires Zubayda to sing described?

2. How does Yasin remember his happy childhood ruined by a fruit merchant?

3. How are Kamal's "story hungry" actions described in Chapter 9?

4. How is Yasin and Amina's visit to the al-Husayn shrine described?

5. How are Amina's duties on her roof described in Chapter 6?

6. How are Ahmad's actions to those outside his household described?

7. How does the family react when Fahmy asks Amina to arrange his marriage to Maryam?

8. How are Ahmad and Mme. Zubayda's interactions described in Chapter 14?

9. How is Yasin's meeting with his mother described in Chapter 18?

10. What is the nature of Yasin's complaints about his mother when he visits Ahmad in Chapter 17?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The concept of marriage is one subject that is discussed by numerous characters throughout the book, each with his/her own ideas of what it represents.

Part 1.) How do characters like Aisha and Khadija feel about the notion of marriage?

Part 2.) What reasons does Ahmad have for not allowing his children to be married when they wish?

Part 3.) What is telling about the nature of marriage in the book based on Yasin's experience?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the symbolism of author's use of religious and political figures in the book, notably Martyr al-Husayn and Sa'd Zaghlul. What tone might the author be trying to set to describe the impact these figures had on Egyptian culture?

Essay Topic 3

Compare and contrast Ahmad's dual personalities with his family and outside in public. How is the reader able to know Ahmad's true nature based on the secret fantasies he has about others in public?

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