View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Part I, Chapter 4, who asks Asghar, "When are we going to hear the good news of your marriage?" (20)?
(a) Mir Nihal.
(b) Bilqeece.
(c) Bundoo.
(d) His sister-in-law.

2. Where does Mir Nihal go on most evenings after dinner in Part I?
(a) To visit his mistress.
(b) To the mosque.
(c) To see his friend Nawab Puttan.
(d) To work for a few more hours.

3. What does Ali say caused the British paranoia about Muslim scholars that resulted in their violent suppression of the "Wahabi" conspiracy (xii)?
(a) The capture of Delhi by Ahmad Shah Abdali.
(b) The defeat of Shah Alam.
(c) The influence of Ram Mohan Roy.
(d) The activism of Shah Waliullah.

4. What quality does the narrator claim is "peculiar to Delhi-ites alone of all the peoples of India" (99)?
(a) Their extreme piousness and religious faith.
(b) Their willingness to accept the rule of the English.
(c) Their eagerness to have fun and enjoy themselves.
(d) Their love of poetry and music.

5. What is the "prescription written on the southern gate of the Jama Masjid" a recipe for (88)?
(a) Gold.
(b) A powerful charm.
(c) A "universal elixir."
(d) An antidote to poison.

Short Answer Questions

1. How old is Mir Nihal?

2. What conclusion does Mir Nihan come to during his conversation with Nawab Puttan in Part II?

3. What advice does Bari give Asghar about his love life?

4. What principle does Saeed Hasan say a man should put first when he is looking for a wife?

5. When Begam Nihal tells her husband that he can buy more pigeons to replace those that have died, how does he react?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Begam Nihal tease her husband about when she calls him in to talk with him about Asghar and Bilqeece?

2. How is Babban Jan's mother affected by her death, and what does Mir Nihal tell the woman about her concerns?

3. What is the Ghadar of 1857?

4. What idea of Mir Nihal's comes up again when he discusses the marriage of Sheikh Mohammad Sadiq's niece, and how is he distracted from pursuing it?

5. What does the reader learn in Chapter 3 about Mir Nihal's real reason for working at the lace shop, and how does this shed light on his feelings about his family?

6. Describe the family's celebration of Eed (Eid).

7. Who is Hameed, and what light does Asghar think Hameed's situation throws on his own?

8. What does Khwaja Ashraf Ali notice about Mir Nihal on Thursday, and why does he react the way he reacts when he learns the cause, on Friday?

9. What suggestion does Begam Jamal make to Begam Nihal about Asghar?

10. How did Asghar come to be raised in Bhopal?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,181 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample