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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. What are Jones's last words to Philipot?
(a) He wishes he could have fought better.
(b) He regrets coming to Haiti.
(c) There is no room for him outside Haiti.
(d) He wishes he could have seen Brown one last time.

2. While going through his mother's desk after she dies, what did Brown find in the piggy bank?
(a) Outdated currency from the previous government.
(b) A folded picture of a man whom Brown does not recognize.
(c) A casino token and a medal from the resistance movement.
(d) A few pounds of English money.

3. Because Mere Catherine has no Coca-Cola, what does she give Brown to drink with his rum?
(a) Root beer.
(b) Nothing.
(c) Orange juice.
(d) Seven-Up.

4. When Mr. Smith hears that Doctor Philipot had killed himself, what does he want to do?
(a) Visit the widow.
(b) Get an explanation.
(c) Attend the memorial service.
(d) Send flowers.

5. What is Doctor Magiot's opinion of American aid to Haiti?
(a) America will help only if her interests are threatened.
(b) Americans do not care enough to lift a finger.
(c) America is Haiti's only hope for peace.
(d) America will help only if she becomes interested.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Martha's husband think about her affair with Brown?

2. What was striking about the countess's hair?

3. What do Brown and Philipot's nephew discuss with the ambassador?

4. In a late-night conversation, Brown and Jones talk about their official jobs titles, which are vague. What does this tell the reader about their relationship?

5. When Brown disembarks from the Medea, why is Martha sitting in the place she used to rendezvous with him?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Brown and Mr. Smith visit the Secretary of State, hoping to free Jones, how is Brown successful? Why is Mr. Smith's bluntness ineffective?

2. With the thought that Doctor Philipot's spirit might be hovering around the body, hoping for an encouraging word of send-off, Brown purposely speaks trivial words about eating eggs in the morning. What does this tell the reader about his perception of death? How does it fit the tone of the book?

3. After visiting Martha and her husband at the embassy, what drives Brown to Mere Catherine's? Is he satisfied there?

4. Doctor Magiot asserts, in a conversation with Brown, "No, I don't despair, I don't believe in despair, but our problems won't be solved by the Marines. . . . We are an evil slum floating a few miles from Florida, and no American will help us with arms or money or counsel" (p. 222). Is this a fair view of the situation? What might lead the doctor to believe this?

5. Once again, in Part 1, Chapter 4, Brown is asked to look out for Jones and any suspicious activity he may be involved in. How is this instance similar to the first? How does it differ? What changes might be attributed to a greater understanding of Jones's character?

6. Both the Secretary of State and Jones are confused by the idea that Jones would be charged with something. How is this indicative of Haitian politics? How does Brown's narration of the scene explain his view of it?

7. When Brown first mentions his hotel to the passengers aboard the Medea, he shows them bright postcards of bikini-clad girls and jazz drummers. Does this present Brown as an optimist or a pessimist? What do the postcards tell the reader about his character?

8. In Part 1, Chapter 5, Brown notes that he cannot remember Martha's voice, though he can picture her handwriting. What clue does this give the reader about their relationship?

9. Doctor Magiot's funeral oration for Philipot consists mostly of the consolation that he died a natural death, which is to say he was not murdered. Considering the political environment, is this a compliment? What about the dead man's sense of mathematics?

10. When Mr. Smith sees Philipot's body in the pool, he thinks he is a sleeping beggar. How does this thought reflect on Mr. Smith's character? What about the fact that he wants to take money to the man?

(see the answer keys)

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