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1. What phrase does Alfa Ndiaye begin repeating immediately in Part I?

The phrase Alfa Ndiaye begins repeating immediately in Part I is "I know, I understand."

2. What does Alfa think about his fellow soldiers and his perceptions of who is really is in Part I?

In Part I, Alfa thinks that his fellow soldiers in the trenches will never really know who he is.

3. What does Alfa let the reader know, through his narration, about the way his best friend Mademba died?

Alfa lets the reader know through his narration that his best friend Mademba took too long to die and suffered too much.

4. What does Mademba ask Alfa to do as Mademba lays mortally wounded on the battlefield?

Mademba asks Alfa, as Mademba lays mortally wounded on the battlefield, to kill him so he will not have to suffer any longer.

5. How does Mademba Diop die?

Mademba Diop is disemboweled by a German soldier with a bayonet on the battlefield, and he takes hours to die an agonizing death.

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