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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 does Nassrin's mother's teaching symbolize?

2. What does Nafisi believe is the main point of "Lolita"?

3. What is the first work Nafisi and her students in the study group discuss?

4. Why is Negar upset?

5. According to Nafisi, how is the character of Lolita like Nafisi's students?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to disrupt the class discussion in Chapter 17?

2. What factors cause Nafisi to resign from her position at the university?

3. Why does Nafisi describe the three types of women portrayed in "A Thousand and One Nights"?

4. How is Professor X's method of teaching literature different than Nafisi's method of teaching literature?

5. What is the relationship between the imaginary rain shower and the meeting of Nafisi's class?

6. Why does Nafisi believe the scene where Humbert picked up Lolita at summer camp is the heart of Nabokov's novel?

7. What is the purpose of the dreams that Nafisi describes?

8. What does the magician do with the photographs Nafisi shows him?

9. In Chapter 2, why does Nafisi describe the first meeting of the study group in present tense instead of past tense?

10. Why does Nafisi ask her children about their memories of Iran?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In his "Letter from the Birmingham Jail (April 1963)," Martin Luther King, Jr. responded to critics who called him an extremist by pointing out examples of what he called extremist behavior by famous political and religious figures such as Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Jesus. King challenged the notion that "extremist" was a negative behavior, and stated that "the question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be."

Choose 3 of the characters listed below. Provide examples of how they are portrayed as extremists in the book. Would the character have the same perspective on their behavior as the author? If not, would the character see himself or herself as an extremist? Would they consider being an extremist to be a positive or a negative characteristic?

~ Nafisi

~ The magician

~ Mr. Bahri

~ Mr. Nyazi

~ The Iranian Government

~ Nafisi's students in the study group

Essay Topic 2

In Part 3, Chapter 18, Nafisi describes a "perfectly equipped failure." In Part 3, Chapter 26, Nafisi provides characteristics of a traditional heroine. Using the descriptions and characteristics provided in these chapters, write an essay that addresses the following questions:

1) Would Laleh be considered a heroine or a perfectly equipped failure?

2) Would Razieh be considered a heroine or a perfectly equipped failure?

3) Which does Nafisi consider more worthy of admiration, a heroine or a perfectly equipped failure?

Essay Topic 3

America is presented as both reality and symbol, as a concept and a country. Describe the various ways America is interpreted and understood by those in Nafisi's classes and the Iranian government. How do those interpretations compare to Nafisi's personal memories and descriptions of America? What elements of America are emphasized? What elements of America are omitted? Why are there omissions?

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