View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. What environmental change is apparent in Section 32?

2. What does the Nawab joke about on the day that he and Olivia make love for the first time?

3. What does the narrator compare Maji to in her August 31st journal entry?

4. How does Inder Lal react to Chid's reappearance in Section 28?

5. Where does Olivia go after her abortion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many minor characters in Heat and Dust have an important role in the story and a huge impact on other characters. Choose characters below and discuss the impact or the role that this person has on other characters in the novel.

1) Harry.

2) Maji.

3) Ritu.

4) Mrs. Saunders.

Essay Topic 2

Inder Lal, the narrator, Olivia and the Nawab all carry on affairs while married or with someone who is married.

1)Is any one of these deceptions more acceptable than the others? For instance, is it more okay for the narrator to have the affair than Inder Lal because she is unmarried?

2) How does the act of deception affect the character's future in the story?

3) What other acts of deception occur in the novel, and how do they impact the characters involved?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout Heat and Dust, the narrator discovers negative traits about Olivia, yet this only seems to fuel her desire to discover more about this intriguing woman.

1) Compare and contrast the things that motivate Olivia and the narrator.

2) Explain how positive and negative traits in the narrator inspire her to learn about Olivia.

3) Explain how Olivia's decisions impact the narrator's decisions.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 340 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample