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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. Why do Jones and Brown go back to the Medea?

2. Who shoots Captain Concasseur and rescues Brown and Jones from capture?

3. Mrs. Smith is proud of the American ballot that shows her husband's name as a presidential candidate. What is Brown's perception of voting in Haiti?

4. Why does Captain Concasseur order the Tonton Macoutes to hit and kick Brown?

5. As Jones presents his business plan, what Biblical story is Brown reminded of?

Short Essay Questions

1. While lying in bed in the Hotel Trianon, Martha notes to brown that their relationship is no longer an adventure. What are the signs of this change? What are their choices for the future?

2. According to Doctor Magiot in Part 2, Chapter 1, what role does Voodoo play in Haitian culture? What is its relation to Catholicism?

3. The night before he takes Jones out of Port-au-Prince, Brown wanders through his empty hotel. What does it reveal to the reader about Brown's personality? What is the effect of this scene?

4. When just before leaving Haiti, Mr. Smith scatters money in front of the post office, what does he show about himself? Has he changed since he first came to the country?

5. Though Brown does not want to board the Medea for a last drink with the purser, he feels attached to the ship and the memories there. What does this say about Brown's loneliness? Is he happy alone in his hotel?

6. What is the purpose of the Tonton Macoutes' visit to Brown at six o'clock in the morning? Do they expect to find anyone?

7. Young Philipot, who visits Brown while he is swimming one early afternoon, is consumed with the idea of owning a Bren gun and fighting Papa Doc's army with it. In his idealism, what other character does he resemble and why?

8. When Brown attends the Voodoo ceremony with Joseph, several white-wrapped bodies are held close to the flame so that the skin burns. What is the effect of this scene? What is its possible antecedent?

9. When Jones realizes that Captain Conasseur is curious about his actions, he comes to Brown's hotel in a panic. What does this tell us about Jones's plan to get rich? How prepared is he to deal with the Tonton Macoutes?

10. From even their first meeting, Brown hesitates to address Jones as "Major Jones." How does this begin to explain Jones's character? How does it prepare the reader for the revelation that Jones has never even seen a man die?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Of his relationship with Martha, Brown says, "Like some wines, our love could neither mature nor travel." Find examples in the text which illustrate this. How was their love bound to the moment? How were they bound to Haiti? What clues tell the reader that their love will not last?

Essay Topic 2

The Smiths are devoted to the idea of the vegetarian center, even when Haitian reality tells them that it will never happen. They are clinging to the dream in the face of truth. Where else does this happen in the novel? Who is clinging to dream that can never become reality?

Essay Topic 3

At the end of Part Two, Chapter Two, Mrs. Smith apologizes for being comic figures, and Brown corrects her, saying they are heroic. Which of these is true: are the Smiths comic or heroic? What actions or characteristics fit each role? Give examples from the text to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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