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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. How old is Kin Arad?

2. Why does Silver go by a nickname?

3. What do Kin and the others do with Jago?

4. In their first morning on the flat planet, what attempts to visit Kin and the others?

5. What will happen to Silver if she goes without the crucial thing she needs from the dumbwaiter?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the explorers first interactions with the inhabitants of the flat planet.

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

3. What things are unusual about the ship that Jago arranged for the expedition?

4. What does a watcher do, and what is required of a watcher?

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

6. What does the Company provide for humanity as a whole and, specifically, for its employees?

7. What happens to the ship during its approach to the surface, and what is the result of this?

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

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

10. What is unusual about the raven's behavior as the group prepares to leave Kung?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The concept of loyalty is important in the story. It affects Kin most of all, since she has immense loyalty to the Company and has reasons to begin questioning them.

Part 1) What is the nature of loyalty, and how is it seen in this book? How do the characters develop loyalty?

Part 2) How and why do characters betray or question their loyalty?

Part 3) What important roles does loyalty play in the storyline? What does it illustrate about the characters that it affects? How would the book be different and potentially less interesting if these complex loyalties were not present, or did not develop?

Essay Topic 2

Immortality is an important component of the universe of the novel. It has saved humanity and allowed the Company to wield vast power over its employees and the entire race.

Part 1) Explain the context of immortality in fiction. What other influential stories include immortality, and how does this affect the plot of those stories? What are common perceptions about and themes surrounding immortality?

Part 2) In this story, how has immortality affected the human race as a whole. Is this change realistic and believable?

Part 3) How does immortality affect the characters and the plot of the novel? Is it an important part of the story? Why or why not?

Part 4) Taken as a whole, have the Company's treatments been good or bad for humanity? Are they good or bad for the main characters?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, characters are seen to exhibit varying levels of responsibility, especially Kin and Marco. Sometimes they act as the voice of reason or as a protector, other times they do things rashly, or need protection themselves.

Part 1) Which characters are shown taking significant responsibility? Why and how do they do so?

Part 2) At what times do Kin and Marco demonstrate a lack of responsibility. What situations or feelings cause them to suspend their mature decision-making?

Part 3) How do Kin and Marco learn from one another, and how do they support each other? By the end of the novel, have they become more or less responsible?

(see the answer keys)

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