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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. Who explains that Maali’s pain is a symptom of his attempts to escape the In Between?

2. In Fourth Moon, what does Maali wish he had with him?

3. In the Fifth Moon, who discusses Maali’s case?

4. What makes the photos unsafe?

5. Where did DD want to go so he and Maali could live and work freely?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Maali spend the night of his death?

2. How does Maali's sense of truth and reality falter?

3. What does Maali think about while in the mara tree with Sena?

4. How does the author use Sena’s character?

5. What does Dr. Ranee inform Maali about in their first interaction?

6. How does the author convey Maali's spiritual trascencedence?

7. Why is Maali upset when he witnesses the Minister burn the box?

8. What is Maali gaining now that he is a member of the spirit world?

9. Why does Maali continue lamenting the loss of his photographs?

10. Why is Maali desperate to control Down There?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did Maali spend the night of his death? How did he hurt DD?

Essay Topic 2

Seven Moons has been described as a cross-genre novel, merging magical realism with a ghost story, a whodunnit, and a state-of-the-nation piece of work. Discuss how Shehan Karunatilaka has allowed these genres to intersect and whether you think it is successful.

Essay Topic 3

"Why is Sri Lanka Number One in suicides?" asks the girl peering through thick glasses. "Are we that much sadder or violent than the rest of the world?" "Who the fuck cares?" says the hunched figure, as a lady in pigtails does her high jump over the edge. "It’s because we have just the right amount of education to understand that the world is cruel," says the schoolgirl. "And just enough corruption and inequality to feel powerless against it" (285).

What might this excerpt from the text say about social conditions within Sri Lanka during the civil war, and why was the suicide rate in the country so high?

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This section contains 696 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample