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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who are the Mughals?
(a) An Afghan dynasty who ruled parts of India for about 16 years during the 1500's.
(b) A Turco-Mongolian dynasty who ruled India from the late 1500's to the early 1700's.
(c) A dynasty originating in Southern India that ruled from the 1400's to the early 1600's.
(d) A dynasty originating in Northern India that ruled for the first half of the 1800's.

2. What does Mir Nihal think of when he is at the procession and sees the Red Fort?
(a) That the English are desecrating it.
(b) That Shah Jahan was a glorious ruler.
(c) That in a sense, the Mughals were also occupiers.
(d) That Delhi was at its greatest during the time of the Delhi Sultanate.

3. To what does the narrator compare the streets and alleys of Delhi?
(a) An algebraic equation.
(b) The Minotaur's maze.
(c) The Sphinx's riddle.
(d) A game of chess.

4. When Begam Waheed first arrives and asks her mother why Asghar looks thin and pale, what does her mother tell her is bothering him?
(a) Missing his sister.
(b) The heat.
(c) His father's criticism.
(d) His love life.

5. Where does Mir Nihal go on most evenings after dinner in Part I?
(a) To the mosque.
(b) To work for a few more hours.
(c) To visit his mistress.
(d) To see his friend Nawab Puttan.

6. What word do the older people like Begam Nihal use to refer to the place where they live?
(a) Aryavarta.
(b) Hindustan.
(c) Nabhivarsha.
(d) Bharat.

7. On page 53, what does Mushtari Bai compare herself to?
(a) A "new flower in bloom."
(b) A "candle which tempts the moths."
(c) An "oasis in the desert."
(d) An "evil-smelling flower."

8. To what animal does the narrator compare the city of Delhi in the story's opening pages?
(a) A beaten dog.
(b) A starving tiger.
(c) An overburdened donkey.
(d) An elderly bull.

9. In the opening paragraphs of Part II, Chapter 7, what aspect of the days before the Coronation is stressed?
(a) The hypocrisy.
(b) The injustice.
(c) The anxiety.
(d) The novelty.

10. Who is Nisar Ahmad?
(a) Mir Nihal's partner in the lace business.
(b) A former lover of Babban Jan's.
(c) The muezzin at Mir Nihal's mosque.
(d) Mir Nihal's son-in-law.

11. Which of his family members demonstrates sympathy for the dead pigeons and for Mir Nihal?
(a) Begam Nihal.
(b) Masroor.
(c) Mehro.
(d) Begam Jamal.

12. When Begam Nihal is asked to tell the story of the Mutiny, the word "Farangis" is used (6). What does this word mean?
(a) Government officials.
(b) Military officers.
(c) Foreigners, especially Europeans.
(d) Marketplace gossips.

13. In the story about Mir Jamal's pigeons, what does Mir Jamal refuse to do?
(a) Fly his pigeons with amateurs and hobbyists.
(b) Take part in any matches held at the Durbar.
(c) Keep the pigeons that his flock captured.
(d) Train his pigeons to fly from a carriage roof.

14. To whom does Sheikh Mohammad Sadiq wish to marry his niece?
(a) Majeed.
(b) Ghafoor.
(c) Asghar.
(d) Masroor.

15. While Asghar and Begam Waheed are talking about their childhood, what can Asghar hear in the background?
(a) Pigeons cooing.
(b) Street vendors shouting.
(c) His aunts arguing.
(d) Qawwals singing.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is Mir Nihal hurrying home at the beginning of Part II, Chapter 1?

2. In what year do Part II, Chapters 1-4 take place?

3. What event are workers being forced to work in the extreme heat in preparation for?

4. What conclusion does Mir Nihan come to during his conversation with Nawab Puttan in Part II?

5. What does Asghar's strategy seem to be in bringing up the death of Begam Waheed's husband?

(see the answer keys)

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