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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. Mustafa had already decided to be a merchant, rather than following his father into the notary business, by the time his brothers Yusuf and Yahya were how old?

2. In Chapter 7: "The Story of Apalache," the members of the expedition continue to march toward what destination?

3. Mustafa states in the Prologue that he "intends to correct details of the history that was compiled by" what number of his companions?

4. What sort of transport were Mustafa's parents using to cross Umm er-Rbi’ River on the day his father was attacked by a Portuguese soldier?

5. Zainab was which female member of Mustafa's family with whom he lived in Azemmur?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Mustafa react to his father's plans for Mustafa's future career?

2. Name at least five "strange customs and unbearable rules" (114) required of slaves, according to Mustafa.

3. What change occurred in the personality of Mustafa's father and what caused the change?

4. Discuss a scene Mustafa describes that would almost certainly not have appeared in the "Castilian gentlemen's" (3) official account?

5. In what way does Lalami include the theme of invisibility in the Prologue of the novel?

6. In what way does Lalami depict the theme of family bonds within Chapter 5: "The Story of the March"?

7. In what way does the motif of water enter the story of Mustafa's birth, as related in Chapter 2: "The Story of My Birth"?

8. Who were the main leaders of the expedition to La Florida? Name one fact about each leader.

9. With what element of life did Mustafa become too entranced, causing him to eventually name it among the causes of his downfall?

10. Mustafa's memory of being purchased by Señor Dorantes primarily involves which of the five senses? In what way?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Choose an object from The Moor's Account, such as the tattoo, the standard, the scroll, or some other symbolic object and discuss its overall meaning and its connection to themes within the text.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Lalami's reasons for using the technique of a framed narrative to tell the story of The Moor's Account.

Essay Topic 3

Examine Lalami’s use of characterization methods to portray a number of real people within her novel The Moor's Account. What effects do these characterization methods have on the work's inherent themes and messages?

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