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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 does Sarah assure Parvin she will not make her talk about even though Parvin had asked her to talk about?

2. When did Parvin move from Iran to Europe?

3. How old was Parvin when her family was forced into hiding?

4. What did Truong tell Mai he came to the upper deck to do after she gives him water?

5. What do the people in the temple repeat every morning?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was Parvin’s radio program in the states called and what was its purpose?

2. What does Big Sister bring Mayako to do with the Volunteer Corps?

3. What are some of the first images Sarah sees in the terminal at the start of “Tehran Calling”?

4. How does Mayako’s mother describe her life as a child?

5. What happens to Truong on the 13th day when they finally see land ahead?

6. Where does Mai’s mother send her the day after visiting her father in the hospital?

7. Describe the play Parvin had seen when Sarah had arrived in Iran.

8. What does Mayako tell Mrs. Tamura after her parents visit her at the temple on Visiting Day?

9. Who is the main character of “Tehran Calling” and where is she in the first lines of the story?

10. What happens to the bodies of those who die on the boat?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Father / child relationships are a recurrent theme in Nam Le’s The Boat. Choose two stories from The Boat and compare and contrast the father / child relationships represented in the two stories.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing Nam Le’s use of flashbacks at least two of his short stories. Discuss how these flashback’s impact the reader’s experience and whether you think they are effective. Be sure to include direct examples from the text to support your argument.

Essay Topic 3

Choose two stories from The Boat that have common themes. Write an essay comparing and contrasting how these themes are developed in each story. Use direct examples from each stories to support your analysis.

(see the answer keys)

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