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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 does Marco misuse the dumbwaiter during the group's first night at the sailor's homeland?

2. When they land on an island after leaving the sailor's people, what does Kin attempt to do?

3. With regards to Silver's impending madness, what course of action does Kin initially suggest?

4. What kind of structure do Kin and the others discover as they approach the center of the flat planet?

5. Kin helps heal some injured locals by using which of the following?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. How do Kin's feelings about the Company begin to change soon after the dumbwaiter is destroyed?

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

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

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

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

7. Why is Kin arrested?

8. What do the explorers come to believe about the machinery of the planet?

9. What happens to Silver as she and the others near the hub?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

"The Hero's Journey," a collection of archetypal story elements, was suggested by Joseph Campbell as an explanatory tool for understanding storytelling. The structure of this novel demonstrates several of Campbell's archetypes.

Part 1) Explain Campbell's "Hero's Journey." Could the author have been aware of this concept, and does it appear to have informed his writing?

Part 2) Discuss ways in which elements of the plot correspond to stages from the hero's journey. Explain each stage that applies and cite the section from the book that corresponds to it, giving examples and a full explanation of the correspondence.

Part 3) Discuss stages of the hero's journey that are not present in the novel. Are these omissions demanded by the plot? Would the story have been significantly enhanced by the addition of any particular archetype?

Essay Topic 2

The strata machine, invented by either the Spindle Kings, the Wheelers before them, or possibly some earlier race, is capable of creating new planets. This is the primary occupation of the Company, and it has given them immense power as well as ensuring the survival of the human race. There is not much detail given about the process of creating a new planet. This essay addresses that subject in a creative fashion.

Part 1) How does the process of building a planet begin? What factors have to be determined during the planning stage? What personnel and resources are required for the operation?

Part 2) What is the first step in the actual construction of the planet? How does construction proceed from these first stages through to the completion of the project?

Part 3) What are some special considerations that have to be taken into account in the final touches of planet creation?

Part 4) How are colonists selected and placed on the planet, and how is the planet maintained and monitored?

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.

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