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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. After Azari's beating, what powerful emotion grips him?

2. The destroyer of monuments has been destroying monuments for how long?

3. What are the two kinds of revolutions?

4. What has become of a poet friend of Azari's?

5. Who is executed after the revolution is concluded?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Azari learn about his brother once he returns to Iran in 1977?

2. Why does Kapuscinski feels that Shah blundered in his response to unrest prior to the revolution?

3. What do revolution leaders do with Shah loyalists, and how does this action demonstrate a wide divide between Iranian and Western cultures?

4. What anecdote does Kapuscinski share about the Persian carpet salesman, and what is this salesman's message?

5. Describe the incident in which Azari is beaten.

6. Explain Azari's association with the Iranian Writers' Association.

7. Why is Azari shocked when he returns to Teheran for the first time in eight years?

8. How does Mahmud Azari sum up the psychological atmosphere in Iran, and its relationship to the modernization going on?

9. Who is Mahmud Azari? What is the background of Mahmud Azari?

10. What happens in Qom as a result of an unflattering article in Etelat about Khomeini that spurs the revolution?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Iran is notable for being one of the largest concentrations of Shiite Muslims in the world.

1) What is Shiism? Explain what followers believe about Muhammad and Ali.

2) How does Shiism differ from Sunni Islam? How do the two sides get along?

3) How does Kapuscinski trace modern terrorism to Iranian Shiism?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the concept of "literary reportage" and why Kapuscinski's work might be said to be written in that style. What about the style, structure, content, etc., of Shah of Shahs lends itself to literary reportage? To what extent does Kapuscinski involve himself in his own work?

Essay Topic 3

What role did oil play in Iran's history? List major events that involved oil, particularly the West's interest in Iranian oil reserves. For Kapuscinski, what does oil represent/symbolize for the poor people of the Middle East?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 898 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample