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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 is Joel's relationship to Kin?

2. How does the raven escape from its cage?

3. Becoming a watcher requires what sacrifice?

4. Jago Jalo has a device that allows him to do which of the following?

5. During their trip to the sailor's homeland, what are the protagonists are attacked by?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Jago die?

2. Why does Kin feel conflicted about going with Jago?

3. How do Kin and the others help the sailors who try to visit them?

4. What is Marco's background, and what does he believe about himself?

5. Describe Silver's appearance and personality. Why is she interested in the flat planet?

6. What does each character do during the journey to the flat planet?

7. What evidence does Jago produce to back up his claims about the flat planet?

8. What does the Kung bartender's action say about Kin's fame?

9. What are some of the technological resources that the group has at their disposal, and how will these things help them?

10. As they fly around the flat planet, what do Kin and the others observe and conclude about it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

After they crash on the flat planet, Kin and the others interact with its inhabitants in many places and in many different ways. These people, as rough analogues of real historical cultures, serve to illustrate various points that the author wishes to make about those civilizations.

Part 1) Describe the first meeting between the inhabitants of the flat planet and Kin and her companions. What are the results of this exchange? What impression do Kin and the other take away from this experience?

Part 2) Explain the other interactions the explorers have with the locals. How do these compare with their first interactions? Explain ways that the explorer's perceptions of the locals change as a result of later encounters.

Part 3) What impact do the explorers have on the local populations? Explain both immediate and long lasting effects.

Essay Topic 2

The computers of the creators of the flat planet are the only items left behind. They manage and maintain the planet as best they can without the help of a Disc Master. Once their nature is revealed at the end of the book, it is apparent that they have been influencing the characters since they arrived.

Part 1) Explain what the computers are, why the were created, and what function they serve.

Part 2) What are the computers' capabilities, and what can they not do?

Part 3) How could the computers have influenced and directed Kin and the others since the time of their arrival. Cite specific examples from the book and explain how the computers could have manipulated these events in each case.

Essay Topic 3

There are many examples of characters attempting and succeeding in taking revenge in this novel. It is a major theme that causes important changes within characters and drives the plot forward at important points.

Part 1) Which characters attempt or succeed in taking revenge in the novel? What are their motivations? Are they justified in their intentions?

Part 2) How do these actions affect and change these characters? Do they come to regret their actions?

Part 3) What can be said about the overall impact of the desire for revenge in the novel? In general, is it helpful or destructive? If one or more cases are exceptions to this general rule, explain their nature and importance.

(see the answer keys)

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