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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. What are the women's duties after the yams are planted?

2. Who is the powerful orator that informs the ten thousand men of the emergency facing the nine villages of Umuofia?

3. How does eighteen-year-old, Okonkwo, bring honor to his village?

4. Why does Okonkwo beat his second wife, Ojiugo, during the sacred Week of Peace?

5. When is the only time that Unkona is not haggard and mournful?

Short Essay Questions

1. How would you justify Okonkwo's harsh treatment of his family and his uncontrollable temper?

2. Who do you think benefits from the judgment of the egwuwu in the trial of Uzowulu and his wife and family and why?

3. Compare the stories of men to the stories of women in Umuofia.

4. Explain how Ikemefuna is a good friend to Obiageli on the day of the New Yam Festival.

5. Analyze Okonkwo's feelings for Enzinma and Ekwefi, and how they relate to his fear of weakness.

6. Describe why Okonkwo is considered a wealthy man by Umuofia's standards.

7. Summarize the role of the women during the New Yam Festival.

8. Determine the point of view of Mbaino with regard to settling the dispute with Umuofia over the murder of Ezeugo.

9. What is the tradition the in-laws must do for the uri?

10. Explain why sharecropping is a very difficult way to get ahead for Okonkwo, and how it impacts his parents and sisters.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe in detail the three rituals of a wedding engagement for the Ibo people: the bride price, the delivery of the palm-wine, and the confession. Give a detailed summary of each ceremony.

Essay Topic 2

1) Compare and contrast two characters from the novel.

2) What are their physical descriptions, their personalities, feelings, and speech and behavior?

3) Are they believable characters, and how do other characters feel about them?

4) How do they relate to one another?

Essay Topic 3

1) Throughout the novel, Okonkwo is afraid of being like his father. Describe the accomplishments Okonkwo achieves in his lifetime that makes him different from his father.

2) Explain why Okonkwo's final act turns his reputation into everything he feared in life.

(see the answer keys)

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