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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How did Faqih escape his pursuers?
(a) He ran to Paris.
(b) He dressed in women's clothes.
(c) He dressed as a homeless man.
(d) He hid in a trash can.

2. How did Zahra and Faqih travel to Souk al-Arba?
(a) Bus.
(b) Car.
(c) Horse.
(d) Taxi.

3. Whose perspective is "Year of the Elephant" from?
(a) A child.
(b) A wealthy woman.
(c) A homeless man.
(d) A working-class woman.

4. Who, at the end of Chapter 1, gives Zahra a mattress?
(a) Her brother.
(b) The faqih.
(c) Rahman.
(d) Her mother.

5. How was the Sultan of Morocco treated when he returned from exile?
(a) With fear.
(b) Like a hero.
(c) With hatred.
(d) With disdain.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Zahra feel in Chapter 3 when she visits the open air market?

2. In Chapter 1, what does Zahra compare the natural disaster in her town to?

3. Who did Zahra's husband ask permission from before marrying Zahra?

4. Who did Morocco fight in the 19th century?

5. How does Zahra feel at the start of this story?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does the author of the introduction claim that "Year of the Elephant" is "an event in cross-cultural literary history"?

2. How does Zahra's husband sneak Faqih out of town?

3. Who is Safia?

4. Why is Zahra distraught at the start of Chapter 1?

5. Describe Abou Zayd's childhood and how it affected her writing.

6. What was Zahra's marriage proposal like? What happened at the wedding? What was the first year of marriage like?

7. What did Zahra's parents do for a living and why was it dangerous?

8. What was the education crisis Morocco faced in the 1950's?

9. Why does Faqih dislike the French?

10. What happens to Zahra's husband in Chapter 4? How does she find out?

(see the answer keys)

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