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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. When Raju and Velan meet, who does Velan say is causing him problems?

2. How did Raju's father treat the station master?

3. Where did Marco spend his time?

4. What did Raju begin selling in the railway shop?

5. What kept Raju's father from returning for dinner nightly when Raju was young?

Short Essay Questions

1. What role did the railway play in Raju's family?

2. How was Raju always able to offer his customers an answer?

3. How does Raju justify staying on at the temple?

4. Why is it paradoxical that Raju encourages education for the village children?

5. Why did Raju say he didn't grow up like other normal people?

6. How does Raju initially regard the other villagers?

7. How does Raju advance his character's transformation in Chapter 4?

8. How does the structure of the writing style in Chapter 1 portray the inner workings of the protagonist's mind?

9. How were Raju's business tactics influenced by his father?

10. What is revealed about Raju's personality by the fact that he asked the school master to teach at the temple?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did Raju's main character flaw, his preoccupation with reputation, lead the course of his life? Identify and defend the major areas of the novel where Raju had the ability to keep his life on track if he were not so consumed with reputation. In these various instances, why was Raju unable to learn his lesson? What caused Raju to finally see beyond himself?

Essay Topic 2

What purpose does it serve for the author to continually switch tense and perspective in the narrative? If the author were to use only one perspective through the entire novel, which would be most effective and why? What information would the reader no longer be privy to if the author followed your suggestion?

Essay Topic 3

How did Raju's gift to constantly meet everyone's needs help him to get ahead in life? In what ways did it hold him back? What made him unable to say "no" to others?

(see the answer keys)

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