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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 does Tambu decline to have put in her new room in Chapter 3?

2. What does Christine tell Tambu she is surprised about concerning Tambu in Chapter 10?

3. What kinds of creatures does Tambu feel crawling over her in times of stress?

4. What animal does Tambu hear when she wakes up in the beginning of Chapter 9?

5. What is one of the things Tambu notices about the kitchen of the house she visits for accommodation in Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Christine come to Mai Manyanga's in Chapter 5?

2. What kind of shoes does Tambu wear to meet the Widow Riley in Chapter 1 and who gave them to her?

3. Why is Tambu taken to the mental health institution in Chapter 9?

4. Why is Tambu unable to actually meet Widow Riley in Chapter 1?

5. Where does Tambu first hear of the room available in Mai Manyanga's house?

6. What happens in Chapter 7 when Mai Manyanga invites her sons to her house to celebrate one of their birthdays?

7. What does Christine bring to give to Tambu from the village in Chapter 5?

8. In Chapter 1, how would you describe Tambu's relationship with the other women in her hostel?

9. What kind of creature does Tambu routinely find herself brushing off of herself in moments of tension or irritation?

10. Who does Tambu think she sees in the club in Chapter 7 and why does she react so belligerently to this idea?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing how Mai Taka's experiences with her husband, Silence, represent women's plight in Zimbabwe. When Silence takes Mai Taka's son away from her, why does she not feel as if she can fight to get him back?

Essay Topic 2

What does the Green Jacaranda company symbolize to Tambu, both positively and negatively? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing why you think Dangarembga chooses to narrate the novel in the second-person, and what effect this choice has on the reader's understanding of Tambu's character.

(see the answer keys)

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