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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 is NOT true about the market's owner?

2. What are the people like in Wraith-Island?

3. What does the Termite House look like?

4. When his parents do not listen to him, "half-bodied baby" commands that they _________.

5. Why do the attendants bring an eagle?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do the drinkard and his wife find out when they arrive in the town where the tapster is supposed to be? How do they react?

2. What lesson can be learned from the little creature on Wraith-Island who was not picked by the King to help clear the corn fields?

3. During "To Travel by Air," why does the drinkard turn himself into a bird and fly his wife to their next destination?

4. The drinkard describes the inhabitants of "Unreturnable-Heaven's Town" as "backwards." What does he mean by this? Elaborate.

5. Comment on the parent-child relationship, during "On the Way to an Unknown Place." What is significant about the characters' roles?

6. In the first town that the palm-wine drinkard visits, he meets an old man who gives him two challenges. How does the drinkard complete these tasks and what does this say about his human and non-human abilities?

7. How do the drinkard and his wife eventually escape from the white creatures?

8. Describe Death and his house.

9. Why does the drinkard's initial plan to escape the white creatures backfire?

10. How does the drinkard react when he first sees the Skull as a "complete gentleman"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The Palm-wine Drinkard is a circular story in that the main character ends back in the place where he started, his hometown. Explain three possible motives for developing and ending the story like this.

Essay Topic 2

Although the drinkard is named "Father of gods who could do everything in this world," he is not omnipotent. It takes more than a twitch of his nose or a snap of his fingers to accomplish his feats. This being said, the drinkard uses a combination of supernatural magic and human wit when dealing with challenges. Discuss how he is fantastical, how he is human, and why this combination makes him a compelling character.

Essay Topic 3

Fantasy and Magical Realism are two distinct but related literary genres. Discuss:

(1) The differences between the two genres.

(2) Can The Palm-wine Drinkard be considered a fantasy? Why or why not?

(3) Can The Palm-wine Drinkard be considered a an example of Magical Realism? Why or why not?

(4) How would you classify The Palm-wine Drinkard?

(see the answer keys)

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