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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. What was the tall, four-foot wide box found in the individual compartment in Chapter 9?

2. What does the surname Singh mean?

3. What was the name of Gandhi's birthplace, visited by Theroux in Chapter 10?

4. To which country was Sadiq going to bring Turkish workers?

5. What was the topic of the three-day seminar attended by Theroux in Ceylon in Chapter 15?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Duffill appear to be so mysterious to Theroux?

2. Why was Theroux unwilling to explain his first impressions of India to Vishnua Bhardwaj, the Accountant General on the train to Simla?

3. Why was Theroux fascinated by the taxi driver's offer of a prostitute in the Bay of Bengal?

4. Why did Paramahansa Yogananda, the guru followed by Mr. Gupta in Chapter 9, go to America?

5. Why was the destruction of the coral reefs a perfect example of the improvidence of the Ceylonese?

6. Why did Theroux find it insane that people were attending an American literature conference in Ceylon?

7. Describe the Afghan prison conditions mentioned by Mr. Haq in Chapter 6.

8. What was Theroux's reaction to the German drug addict he met in India in Chapter 8?

9. How had Afghanistan changed since the military coup of 1973?

10. Why were the Ceylonese showing so much devotion to St. Jude?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

While most of the trains boarded by Theroux were rather slow and, in many cases old, some of the trains he rode in Japan were extremely fast. As a result, he felt he did not have rich experiences. Did the speed of the trains interfere with his ability to have revealing conversations with others? Or was some of that due to the Japanese character? How would slower trains facilitate conversation?

Essay Topic 2

In his travels through India, Theroux seemed to be convinced India was doomed to failure in the long run unless the population was brought under control. He had also described in disbelieving terms the family planning officials who themselves had large families. Do you believe Theroux was accurate in his claims? How would reining in population figures help a nation develop economically? Is there a point at which nations cannot cope with a large population or can nations figure out a way to successfully spread wealth despite large numbers?

Essay Topic 3

Theroux encountered phenomenal levels of censorship in Singapore. How did the strong central government control of people's lives affect their personalities? Do you think the control caused the Singaporeans to be rude and aggressive, as Theroux found them to be? Or did their traditional behavior simply make it easier for the government to control them? Theroux wrote that freedom would be threatened by the Singaporean focus on connecting everyone electronically. How do you think Theroux would view the Internet? Has his concern about reduced freedoms come true or have people been able to avoid government control despite the impact of computers?

(see the answer keys)

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