View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Mawdo, Aissatou's husband, admire about his father-in-law?
(a) His willingness to cry at his daughter's wedding.
(b) His dexterity and artistry.
(c) His prize cow.
(d) His ability to work though he is handicapped.

2. When did the narrator and her husband's romance blossom?
(a) The moment he saw her as a toddler.
(b) Through their school years.
(c) After their third child was finally in school.
(d) They were not very romantic.

3. According to tradition, who stays with the narrator during this tragic time?
(a) All the children from all the wives.
(b) The deceased male relatives.
(c) The dead person's co-wife.
(d) The shamen of the tribe.

4. Who leads the country when the republic is born?
(a) The dominant political party.
(b) The former king, who agrees to share power.
(c) A group of 15 men.
(d) A dictator who is elected through corruption.

5. What was the narrator's first impression of her future husband?
(a) That he needed to gain a little weight.
(b) That he probably wasn't from her country.
(c) That he was attractive and intelligent.
(d) That he was not very bright.

6. What do the participants donate to this person's funeral?
(a) Money.
(b) A slave to be sacrificed on the funeral pyre.
(c) Land for the widows to live on.
(d) Forty head of sheep.

7. Which wife receives the most money?
(a) They receive an equal amount.
(b) Neither receive money.
(c) The narrator.
(d) The pretty one.

8. What does Modou complain about in his letters?
(a) The difficulty of the coursework.
(b) Racial discrimination.
(c) The quality of the petit fours.
(d) The cold weather in France.

9. How did the narrator's mother feel about the narrator's relationship with Modou?
(a) She was not alive at the time.
(b) She didn't know about it.
(c) She thought it was wonderful.
(d) She disapproved of it at first.

10. Who is Daouda Dieng?
(a) The narrator's maternal uncle.
(b) The narrator's brother.
(c) The head of the police in Senegal.
(d) The boy her mother prefers over Modou.

11. What do the narrator and her friends do at their house parties?
(a) Compare and evaluate their husbands.
(b) Relive their youth to the beat of old songs.
(c) Organize political rallies.
(d) Sell tupperware.

12. What is Daouda Dieng's occupation?
(a) Lawyer.
(b) Herdsman.
(c) Professor.
(d) Physician.

13. What is another secret revealed about the deceased?
(a) He made a pact with an Inman to send his son to England.
(b) He never legally married his second wife.
(c) He had four illegitimate children.
(d) He had abandoned his first wife (the narrator) and her children to live with Binetou.

14. What dos the narrator do as a profession?
(a) A housewife.
(b) A lawyer.
(c) A physician.
(d) A teacher.

15. To whom do the wives give money?
(a) Their children.
(b) Their in-laws.
(c) The government in the form of taxes.
(d) No one; they keep it all for themselves.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why do others disapprove of Aissatou's marriage?

2. What is the first thing the narrator says in her letter?

3. Why does Modou gain many promotions in his job?

4. How does Aissatou respond to Mawdo's taking a second wife under pressure from his mother?

5. What had the deceased bought to please his second wife?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 622 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample