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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. Against what unclean animal does Dawood persuade Raza Hyder to launch a campaign?

2. What is the name of the political party of which Iskander Harappa becomes the leader after the present government loses popularity?

3. In what city does Haroun Harappa hijack an aircraft?

4. What is the nickname given to Babar by the guerrillas?

5. How many children does Naveed bear Talvar Ulhaq?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Captain Talvar Ulhaq take great risk to steal Naveed Hyder from her arranged marriage to Haroun Harappa?

2. Why, in the opinion of Omar Khayyam Shakil, does Sufiya Zinobia become intensely ill?

3. How does Arjumand Harappa choose to remember her father?

4. Why does the Pakistani man in London, referred to by the narrator at the beginning of Chapter 7, murder his own daughter?

5. What change takes place in Iskander Harappa at the age of 40, and why?

6. For what reasons does Arjumand Harappa develop an affection for Haroun Harappa?

7. How do the 18 shawls embroidered by Rani over the six years of home imprisonment depict the life of Iskander Harappa?

8. How does Raza Hyder restore the morale of the deflated Pakistani army?

9. How does Iskander Harappa rise to power?

10. What becomes of Bilquis in her latter years?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the story, there are many actions and sorts of behaviors that ought to cause shame in their actors and do cause shame in Sufiya Zinobia. These causes are usually not explicitly named as such. Thus, in a carefully developed analytical essay, present the primary causes of shame throughout the story and explain their significance to the major themes of the story:

1) Political instability;

2) The oppression of women;

3) Ignoring emotions and its consequences.

Essay Topic 2

In a well-developed and thoughtful analytical essay, consider the character of Iskander Harappa. From millionaire playboy to political poster-boy and eventually hanging corpse, his life goes through many phases and affects many characters. What are his primary character traits? How do these character traits manifest themselves, i.e. in what actions? How does Iskander influence the lives of others? In what ways is his character significant to the primary themes of the story? In what ways is he related to Sufiya Zinobia? How does his interaction with Raza Hyder contribute to unacknowledged national shame?

Essay Topic 3

One of the most important connotations of sharam that is emphasized in Shame is the concept of modesty. Throughout the story, this concept plays an important role in shaping the behavior and attitudes of characters. In a well-developed analytical essay, discuss the various situations in which modesty plays an important role. Which characters adopt attitudes of modesty? How does a lack of modesty negatively effect some characters, and which are effected by it? What does the nuance of modesty carry that distinguishes it from other aspects of shame? What is modesty's role in the main theme of shame?

(see the answer keys)

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