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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why did a rich merchant once give Lakha a buffalo cow?
(a) He was advised to do this because he wanted sons.
(b) He owed Lakha a year's back wages for sweeping at his home and shop.
(c) His father had owed a debt to Lakha's father before both men died.
(d) It was a part of the merchant's daughter's wedding festivities.

2. Why do the outcastes gather in a crowd at the well?
(a) It is a chance to take a break from their long workdays.
(b) It is a chance to talk and exchange gossip.
(c) They must wait for someone higher-caste to draw the water.
(d) They are not allowed to draw water until all of the higher-caste homes have drawn theirs.

3. What is the priest's real motivation in serving Sohini first?
(a) He is intentionally slighting Gulabo.
(b) He admires her piety and humility.
(c) He takes pity on her low status.
(d) He is physically attracted to her.

4. Besides his hockey skills and sense of humor, what is Havildar Charat Singh well-known for?
(a) His hemorrhoids.
(b) His constipation.
(c) His handsomeness.
(d) His kindness.

5. What does the narrator explain with the phrase "set a thief to catch a thief" (38)?
(a) The dishonesty of the street urchin.
(b) The aggression of the man Bakha bumped.
(c) The corruption of the Indian police.
(d) The anger of the crowd around Bakha.

6. What are the "jalebis" that Bakha buys in the market?
(a) A syrup-soaked fried dough.
(b) A European-style hard candy.
(c) A flatbread layered with nuts and dried fruits.
(d) A type of Indian ice cream.

7. What has Bakha successfully taught himself from the book he bought?
(a) Basic math.
(b) The alphabet.
(c) How to write.
(d) How to read.

8. What did Bakha's uncle tell him when he first said that he wanted to be a "sahib" (30)?
(a) That he would have to go to school.
(b) That it was impossible.
(c) That he would miss his family.
(d) That he would need to find another job.

9. What is the job of the young man who is interested in Sohini?
(a) Grass-cutter.
(b) Soldier.
(c) Weaver.
(d) Water-carrier.

10. What is Lakha's purpose in having Sohini call for her brothers?
(a) He wants to scold them for not doing their work properly.
(b) He needs them to escort Sohini to and from the temple.
(c) He wants to ask them about Lachman's intentions toward Sohini.
(d) He intends to get them to do his work as well as their own.

11. What is ironic about Bakha's friends teasing him about his interest in "fashun" (26)?
(a) They are not trying to be cruel.
(b) They are the ones who first encouraged his interest.
(c) They share this interest.
(d) They do not even know what the word means.

12. What does Sohini first tell her brother the priest did to her?
(a) Chastised her for not cleaning properly.
(b) Grabbed her breasts.
(c) Threatened to get their father in trouble.
(d) Made improper sexual suggestions.

13. What does the passage about the cheap nickel jewelry reveal about Bakha?
(a) He secretly admires the bright, cheerful manner in which many caste Hindus dress.
(b) His fascination with the English has ruined for him some of the things he loved as a child.
(c) His disinterest in Indian culture is a result of his outcaste status rather than his exposure to English culture.
(d) His poverty is the main thing that keeps him from dressing as he really wants to.

14. What is a "cantonment" (3)?
(a) Land devoted to agriculture.
(b) A military or police headquarters.
(c) A subdivision of territory.
(d) A palace for minor royalty.

15. What are the walls of the houses of the outcastes made of?
(a) Sheets of tin.
(b) Stone.
(c) Mud.
(d) Scavenged lumber.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Bakha not feel sad about his mother's death?

2. What motivates the babu's son to agree to give Bakha lessons?

3. How many times does Bakha try to mount the temple steps before he has the courage to get all the way to the top step?

4. Why does Rakha not come inside when their father has Sohini call him in?

5. What does the street urchin accuse Bakha of?

(see the answer keys)

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