View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What has happened to Yves' farm over the years since he has returned to Haiti?

2. Who does Amabelle write a letter to in hopes of finding information about Sebastien and Mimi?

3. What shocks Amabelle about Man Rapadou's storytelling?

4. Which of the following people does Amabelle NOT secure passage to Haiti for?

5. Why did Man Denise name her son after Saint Sebastien?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout The Farming of Bones, Edwidge Danticat weaves actual events from history into her fictional story. Select one of the situations where she places her characters within a real historical context and:

1) Describe the historical context of the scene or chapter (i.e., What actually happened in history that Danticat uses in the book?)

2) Discuss the relationship between the historical context and the fictional story. What does this piece of history have to do with Amabelle's life? Why does Danticat choose to place these characters at this particular point in the story in this particular historical context?

Essay Topic 2

Throughout The Farming of Bones, Edwidge Danticat juxtaposes scenes from the past in Haiti with the narrator's present life in the Dominican Republic. Select one of the pairs of chapters where she does this and:

1) Describe the past and present scenes presented in the chapter.

2) Discuss the relationship between the two scenes. What do the two scenes have to do with each other? Why does Danticat choose to place these two scenes from different time periods within the same chapter?

Essay Topic 3

Edwidge Danticat is a Haitian immigrant who came to the U.S. in 1969 when she was 12 years old. Knowing this piece of information:

1) Discuss how you think her background influenced the creation of this novel.

2) Discuss the viewpoints she likely brings to the novel.

3) Critique the novel's point of view. Is it more or less trustworthy? Is it more or less biased? Why?

Cite several specific examples from the novel to support your ideas.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 421 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample