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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. The group discovers a monument of some kind which is somewhat like which real world monument?

2. Of what is the magical table made?

3. After they make contact with the sailors and their people, where do the explorers decide to try to head?

4. The demon claims that is was knocked out of the sky by _________.

5. Kin and Silver discuss what unusual property of the stars?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to Kin and the others at the end of this section?

2. What is Marco's plan, and what do Kin and Silver think about it?

3. What is unusual about the stars seen from the flat planet?

4. What is the group being followed by, and how is it unusual?

5. What does the group do with the winged demon?

6. How is the dumbwaiter destroyed?

7. How does Kin escape after the man whom she and the others meet in the desert turns on them?

8. What does the group discover at the ship's crash-site?

9. Describe the creature put into the cell next to Kin. What does the group eventually learn and speculate about it?

10. Where does the Djinnee come from, and what does he do?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Marco Farfarer experiences significant character progression and drives much of the story.

Part 1) Who is Marco Farfarer, and what are his significant character traits? What kind of state is he in at the beginning of the novel? What major conflicts will he face?

Part 2) As the story progresses, how does Marco deal with these conflicts? What parts of his nature dominate at various times? Use specific examples from the book.

Part 3) How does Marco's character arc end? Has he resolved his major conflicts? Has he learned and grown as a person, and how have his experiences affected him? How is he likely to behave, and what is he likely to go on to do after the events of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Arthur C. Clarke once said that "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Technology plays an important part in driving the story, and it affects many situations and characters. The technology that Kin and the others possess is miraculous to the inhabitants of the flat planet. In turn, the technology that runs the planet is miraculous to Kin and the others.

Part 1) Explain the significance of Clarke's quotation about technology to this story. Does the author seem to be aware of this concept? How does that awareness affect the setting?

Part 2) In what major ways does technology play a role in the story? How would these elements of the story be impossible without this highly advanced technology?

Part 3) How does the technology that Kin and the others possess appear to the inhabitants of the flat planet, and how do they react to it?

Part 4) How does the technology that runs the flat planet appear to Kin and the others? How do they react to it, and how does it affect them?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, the author presents several persons, places, or things that are intended to be direct references to historic or mythical analogues. Many of these references are humorous, but some are intended to provide foreshadowing or other dramatic elements. Research a number of these references for this essay.

Part 1) Explain as many examples of these references as possible. Include a description of the historical or mythical analogue and explain why the person, place, or thing in the book is intentionally constructed to reference it.

Part 2) What purpose do most of these references serve in the novel? Use examples from the book of how these references effect the story.

Part 3) Critically assess whether the use of these references is effective or if it is unnecessary or distracting to the main story.

(see the answer keys)

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