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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 do the explorers see as they fly over the ocean after leaving the sailor's home?

2. Where do the explorers sleep that night?

3. Where does the flying statue take Kin?

4. Why has the spaceship moved to a new location?

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

Short Essay Questions

1. What causes the brawl in the Great Hall?

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

3. Whom do Kin and the others meet in the desert? What is the result of this meeting?

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

5. How does the group confirm that they are being followed?

6. What is unusual about the first island that Kin and the others come to after leaving the sailors' homeland? What danger does the group face there?

7. How are the explorers greeted when they reach the sailors' homeland?

8. How is Kin rescued, and what do the characters think about the manner or her rescue?

9. How is the dumbwaiter destroyed?

10. Why does Kin refuse to believe that the Company could have created the flat planet?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Appropriately, the theme of creation for creation's sake is discussed at the beginning and the end of the novel. It ties the story together, and it ends up being the major theme of the story as a whole.

Part 1) Explain the development of this theme throughout the novel. How does it appear at the beginning and end of the story, and is there any exploration of it between those segments?

Part 2) How do Kin's personality and interests demonstrate her closeness to the concept of creation for creation's sake?

Part 3) Explain why the motivations of the creators of the flat planet are aligned with Kin's. How does this make it easy for Kin to agree to the computer's requests? Why does Kin find the revelations that the computers share with her so life-changing?

Essay Topic 2

Exploration is a major theme of the novel. Alongside creation, it is presented as one of the defining characteristics of intelligence species. Exploration initiates and ends the story.

Part 1) Outline the importance of exploration in the novel. In what ways does it affect the storyline?

Part 2) Which characters are affected by the drive for exploration? Does it have a positive or negative impact on them?

Part 3) How is the drive for exploration presented as an important feature of intelligent life?

Part 4) How does exploration in this story relate to the concept of creation?

Essay Topic 3

Terry Pratchett is an author known for his unusual sense of humor, and humorous events often play a critical role in his novels.

Part 1) Describe the general presence and use of humor in the novel. What dramatic purpose does it generally serve?

Part 2) What are some examples of humorous characters or situations that serve no other purpose than to be entertaining? Do these sections contribute in a positive way to the general mood and tone of the story?

Part 3) Describe some humorous characters or situations which drive the plot forward in important ways, or at important times. How does the use of humor affect these situations?

(see the answer keys)

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