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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. Of whom does Omar dream the night that Sufiya Zinobia is taken to the hospital?

2. To where does the President dispatch a huge army when Iskander is elected Prime Minister?

3. Where is Sufiya Zinobia kept by Raza and Omar after being sedated by her husband?

4. How does the young man who helped inspire the character of Sufiya Zinobia expire?

5. On what does Iskander Harappa feed, as his daughter Arjumand realizes at age 23?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. How do Raza and Omar disagree when it comes to dealing with Sufiya Zinobia's condition?

4. For what reason does Naveed Hyder Ulhaq commit suicide?

5. How do Omar and Raza escape the residence of the C-in-C and the house arrest?

6. What is the nature of the relationship between Omar Khayyam Shakil and Shahbanou?

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

8. Describe the final disgrace of Naveed Hyder's marriage to Captain Talvar Ulhaq.

9. What becomes of Bilquis in her latter years?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine, in a carefully thought-out analytical essay, the usage of the motif of narrative asides employed by the author throughout the book. What do these asides accomplish? How do they add to the story? In what regard does the author use them to the story's benefit? Do they serve any purpose beyond enhancing the imagery and method of the story's delivery?

Essay Topic 2

In a well-structured essay, analyze the actions and motivations of the Shakil Sisters. Although they appear in only a few chapters of the book, they nonetheless play a vital role which shapes events throughout the book. Demonstrate how this is so and what they accomplish. What characters do they influence, and how does that influence further influence other characters? How does everything come full circle to them? In what manner does their life begin, and how does it end? What does the circuity of the story's plot reveal about the Shakil Sisters?

Essay Topic 3

Write a thoughtful analytical essay on the character of Rani Humayun Harappa. As one of the prominent female characters in the story, her actions and character are very important for discerning the significance of the story. In what ways is Rani significant? How does she impact the plot of the story, if at all? What is the significance of her impact, if she has any, and even if she does not? What particular actions demonstrate to the reader the character of Rani? Is she a virtuous character? Defend your answers with explicit references to the text.

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