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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. Who kills Iskander Harappa?

2. How many erratum slips does Bilquis write announcing the change of groom for Naveed's wedding?

3. What ghost perches itself on Raza Hyder's left shoulder after the hanging of Iskander Harappa?

4. What is the name of the general who leads the military coup?

5. Whose lifestyle does Haroun Harappa emulate while growing up?

Short Essay Questions

1. What ethereal conflict besets the mind of Raza Hyder during his presidency?

2. What change takes place in Iskander Harappa at the age of 40, and why?

3. For what reason does Naveed Hyder Ulhaq commit suicide?

4. What becomes of Bilquis in her latter years?

5. How is the crazed killing spree of Sufiya Zinobia discovered?

6. How does Iskander Harappa rise to power?

7. What is revealed by Rani Harappa's uncovering of the deceased Iskander's face?

8. How do the 18 shawls embroidered by Rani over the six years of home imprisonment depict the life of Iskander Harappa?

9. For what reasons does Arjumand Harappa develop an affection for Haroun Harappa?

10. Why does the narrator include the anecdote about seeing a London performance of Danton's Death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In a well-structured essay, analyze the actions and motivations of the Shakil Sisters. Although they appear in only a few chapters of the book, they nonetheless play a vital role which shapes events throughout the book. Demonstrate how this is so and what they accomplish. What characters do they influence, and how does that influence further influence other characters? How does everything come full circle to them? In what manner does their life begin, and how does it end? What does the circuity of the story's plot reveal about the Shakil Sisters?

Essay Topic 2

Compose an insightful essay on the character of Raza Hyder. As one of the principal protagonists of the story's events, what is Raza's overall significance to the story and its main themes? What are his primary character traits and in what actions do they show themselves? Does he in any way change over the course of the story? How do the other characters think of him and act towards him throughout the story? In what ways does he represent universal human nature? Is his character one of virtue? If so, in what ways, and if not, in what ways?

Essay Topic 3

Compose an analytical essay that fully develops the role of women in the Pakistani society as it is portrayed in Salman Rushdie's Shame. How are they viewed as a whole? What particular roles do individual women fulfill within society? What are some examples of this from the story? In what ways are they abused or neglected? In what ways do the women of the novel nonetheless shape the course of events? What is the ultimate result of women consistently being pushed to the periphery of events by their domineering male counterparts?

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This section contains 820 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample