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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 does Taita explain his absence to Pharaoh?
(a) He does not have a convincing reason.
(b) He says these things are too holy to be spoken of.
(c) He says that he was on secret business for the goddess Hapi.
(d) He secretly tells Pharaoh everything that happened.

2. Why does Taita implicitly trust Aton, the royal chamberlain?
(a) Aton is also a eunuch.
(b) Pharaoh has spoken well of him.
(c) Aton also mourns at Lostris's marriage to Pharaoh.
(d) Aton has a good reputation in the palace.

3. Why do Taita and Tanus kill six Shrikes on the road?
(a) They had killed a family of three.
(b) They had attacked the two men.
(c) They had verbally threatened the two men.
(d) They had stolen a donkey.

4. Why is Tanus's speech a surprise to his whole audience, especially Taita?
(a) He repeatedly blames Pharaoh for the nation's problems.
(b) He boldly names all the problems rampaging through Egypt.
(c) He does not mention any modern problems or solutions.
(d) He praises his own god rather than Pharaoh's chosen god.

5. Why is Taita nervous about the pageant at the end of the festival?
(a) He must direct the play.
(b) Lostris has not learned her lines properly.
(c) He wrote a new script to replace the thousand-year-old version.
(d) He is playing the main role of Horus.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Lostris want to drink poison on her wedding night?

2. Why is Taita called the Elder Brother in the slave quarters?

3. Who is Kratas?

4. Once Taita finds Tanus, how does he sober him up?

5. Why is Taita able to persuade Pharaoh of Lostris's illness on their wedding night?

Short Essay Questions

1. What will be the crowning moment of Pharaoh's life? What is Taita's reaction to this moment and how does the reaction seem contrary to Egyptian thought?

2. What danger does Taita find in his basket of pomegranates and mangoes? What does this danger say about his place in society?

3. After Taita is whipped because he dares to petition for Lostris and Tanus's marriage, Lostris cares for his wounds. How does she reveal that she is still a child? What hope does the reader have that her marriage to Tanus will occur?

4. What are Taita's emotions during and after the battle with the Shrikes? How do these emotions explain several facets of his personality? What does this say for Smith's ability to create a complex character?

5. Describe the murder of Tod onstage during the festival pageant. What does Taita reveal about humanity, as he perceives it, during this scene?

6. Why is Lord Intef delighted to arrange the marriage between Lostris and Pharaoh? What plans does he reveal to Taita? How does even this brief interaction show Taita's unstable position in the court?

7. What is the immediate effect as Tanus begins to rout the Shrikes? How does this change affect people's loyalty to Pharaoh? What do you think might be the long-term effects of this new loyalty?

8. What scheme does Taita dream up to help Tanus engage the Shrikes in battle for the first time? How is this scheme something that perhaps only Taita would think of?

9. What condition is Tanus in when Taita finally finds him? How is this condition similar to Lostris's desire for death on her wedding night? How is Taita able to save Tanus in much the same way he saved Lostris?

10. What is the significance of the double crown of Egypt? Why might Taita mention it so often when he describes Pharaoh?

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