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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. How do the women open the meeting?

2. What did August tell Peters he would do?

3. How many attacks did the colony experience?

4. Who is Miep?

5. When did August move back to the colony?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why are some men returning early from the city?

2. Who is Nettie/Melvin?

3. Where has August been living?

4. What resulted from the initial vote among women?

5. How were the men discovered as the attackers?

6. What is the relevance of the song "California Dreamin'"?

7. Why are the women banned from the co-op?

8. What are the circumstances of August learning English?

9. Who will decide what the women do?

10. What did August remember most about Molotschna?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Assess the portrayal of trauma in the novel. What role does memory (or the lack of memory) play in the text?

Essay Topic 2

Why do you think Toews chose August as the narrator of this story? What perspective does he add to the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Consider the role of light and dark in the text. Analyze this theme and its implication for broader meaning within the novel.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 505 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample