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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. What reason does Isabel's father give for forbidding anyone to strike a match even though their boat is about to be hit by a tanker?

2. When regretting the family's decision to leave Cuba, Lito says that "The US has no" (101) what?

3. What does Isabel give the fisherman in return for gasoline to power Ivan's family's boat?

4. What shared characteristic had bonded the Soviet Union to Cuba prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union?

5. Who attacks the Josef and the other children with anti-Semitic abuse during their tour of the ship?

Short Essay Questions

1. Of everyone in Mahmoud's family, who comes the closest to losing his or her life when the apartment is hit by a missile?

2. What U.S. policies change and make it harder for Cuban people to seek refuge in the United States?

3. What happens the first two times Isabel's father tries to journey to America from Cuba?

4. Why does Mahmoud's family choose Germany as a place to run to when they leave Syria?

5. What is the clave?

6. How does the author go about portraying Mahmoud as an empathetic soul?

7. Why do Josef and the other kids on the ship tour become uneasy when they hear some members of the crew singing "The Horst Wessel Song" (95)?

8. What qualities of Senor Castillo's lead to his role as the leader on the boat?

9. Compare and contrast Josef's thoughts about the ship's full speed with Captain Schroeder's comments about the ship's full speed.

10. What is ironic about Josef's feelings following his bar mitzvah?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the instances of irony within the novel's narrative and analyze the author's purpose for including each instance you discuss.

Essay Topic 2

What is the author's message regarding motherhood and what themes does the author employ in order to send these messages to the reader?

Essay Topic 3

How is the topic of revolution treated within the novel and how does its treatment relate to the book's depicted eras?

Discuss the author's messages about guilt and responsibility within the novel Refugee.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,128 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample