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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 Modou think of the policies of the dominant party?

2. What does Mawdo, Aissatou's husband, admire about his father-in-law?

3. What does the narrator wonder about those who come to acknowledge the deceased person?

4. What is a test feared by Senegalese women?

5. What is the traditional contribution for funeral expenses from others?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Modou go to France?

2. How does Mawdo's mother take revenge agains Aissatou?

3. What is the first of Modou's secrets that is revealed?

4. Why is Mawdo's life as a physician successful and what are the implications of this?

5. How does the narrator adapt to the absence of her husband, Modou?

6. What decision does Ramatoulaye make about her three daughters (the "trio") in light of Aissatou's out-of-wedlock pregnancy?

7. How does Aissatou respond to Mawdo accepting a second wife from his mother?

8. What does Ramatoulaye feel about Daouda and his offer of marriage?

9. How does Daba feel about her father marrying her best friend? Do you think Daba's friend, Binetou, had a choice in marrying Modou? What does the narrator think about Binetou agreement to marry the narrator's husband?

10. What are some things Daouda does when he visits the narrator that implies his future offer of marriage?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Polygamy is against the law in the United States, but many other countries, including Senegal, allow men to have multiple wives but not wives having multiple husbands. What does it say about a culture that allows men to have several wives, but not the reverse and how do you think women are viewed in these countries? Should polygamy be controlled by law and what are the advantages and disadvantages of allowing polygamy?

Discuss the way you think a household with multiple wives would work, i.e., would one wife be in charge of the others and what about the children?

Essay Topic 2

Ramatoulaye, the narrator is dealing with the grief of the death of her husband, whom she still loves, though he abandoned her. Grief is an integral aspect of every culture, though different cultures have different ways of dealing with grief. Choose three cultures from three different continents around the world and research the concept of grief in each one. Explain how each culture has traditions in place to deal with grief. Compare and contrast the three cultures and their attitudes about grief and the ways their people deal with grief.

Essay Topic 3

Marriage has changed dramatically in the United States even in the last fifty years. Research as to how marriage has changed in the United States. Do you think marriage will eventually be a thing of the past? Is marriage important for the stability of a culture? How would the culture of the United States change if there was no such thing as legal marriage? How would this impact the well being of children? Are there advantages to not having the institution of marriage?

(see the answer keys)

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