Things Fall Apart, Chapter 11 quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. Besides the shrill cry of insects, what sound does the narrator call part of the night?

   • The drums of a distant village calling the men to a meeting
   • Okonkwo's flute as he plays alone outside his obi after supper
   • Correct answer: Nwayieke's mortar and pestle as she pounds her late foo-foo
   • The bleating of goats tethered behind the wives' huts

   Nwayieke, who lives four compounds away, is notorious for late cooking, and every woman knows the sound of her pounding.

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2. 2

   Question 2. What custom does Tortoise tell the birds they must honour on the way to the feast?

   • Correct answer: Guests take new names for the occasion of a great feast
   • Guests must each bring a gift of kola nuts for their hosts
   • Guests must not speak until their hosts have eaten first
   • Guests choose a king who is served before all the others

   None of the birds had heard of the custom, but they trusted Tortoise as a travelled man, and he named himself All of you.

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3. 3

   Question 3. Why do the people of the sky allow Tortoise to eat before the birds?

   • Tortoise warns them the birds will leave if he is not fed first
   • The birds have told the hosts that Tortoise is the eldest guest
   • Their own custom always serves the guest who arrives first
   • Correct answer: They think it is the birds' custom to leave all food for their king

   The hosts had taken Tortoise as king of the birds, so when the birds only grumbled, they assumed the king was to be served.

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4. 4

   Question 4. What does Ekwefi give Ezinma before Chielo carries her away?

   • A small charm to hang at her neck against evil spirits
   • Correct answer: A piece of dried fish from her smoke-black cooking basket
   • Her own oil lamp so the girl will not fear the darkness
   • A beancake that Chielo herself had bought at the market

   Ekwefi promises Ezinma that Chielo will bring her back soon and gives her fish; the girl rides off clutching it in her left palm.

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5. 5

   Question 5. What does Ekwefi take as an ill omen while she runs after Chielo?

   • An owl hooting three times from the branches above the path
   • A firefly that settles on her arm and then goes suddenly dark
   • Correct answer: Striking her left foot against a root that juts from the path
   • Hearing Ezinma call for her from somewhere far up ahead

   She hits her left foot against an outcropped root, terror seizes her because it is an ill omen, and she runs faster.

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6. 6

   Question 6. Which memory still makes Ekwefi's blood run cold as she walks the dark path?

   • Correct answer: Seeing the glow of Ogbu-agali-odu fly toward her and her mother
   • Being chased by an egwugwu across the village ilo as a girl
   • Losing her way in the Evil Forest while gathering firewood alone
   • Hearing Chielo curse a man who once followed her to the shrine

   Returning from the stream with her mother long ago, she saw the evil essence's glow and they lay by the roadside expecting it to kill them.

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7. 7

   Question 7. According to what people say, why does the moon sometimes rise late in the night?

   • It is hiding from the ancestors who walk abroad after dark
   • It is mourning a child who was lost somewhere in the forest
   • It has been driven back by the heavy clouds of the rainy season
   • Correct answer: It is refusing food, like a sullen husband after a quarrel

   People said a late moon was refusing food, as a sullen husband refuses his wife's food when they have quarrelled.

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8. 8

   Question 8. Why does Ekwefi recoil after she nearly calls out to Chielo for companionship?

   • She remembers that Okonkwo forbade her to leave the compound
   • Correct answer: Chielo's chanting rises again, and there is no humanity in it
   • She realises the figure in the palm tree is the priestess herself
   • Ezinma sneezes and Ekwefi fears the priestess will hear her too

   The possessed voice is not the Chielo who sits with her in the market but the priestess of Agbala, so Ekwefi draws back.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of these events actually happen in Chapter 11?

   • Ekwefi tells Ezinma a story about Tortoise and the birds.

     Happened

   • Okonkwo bars Chielo from entering his compound.

     Didn't happen

   • Ezinma climbs onto Chielo's back holding a piece of fish.

     Happened

   • Chielo stops at the village of Umuachi and sleeps there until dawn.

     Didn't happen

   • Okonkwo comes to the cave carrying a machete.

     Happened

   • Ekwefi follows Chielo and Ezinma into the cave.

     Didn't happen

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10. 10

    Question 10. What does 'luxuriant' mean as used in: "She continually ran into the luxuriant weeds and creepers that walled in the path."?

    • Dry and brittle from the heat
    • Sharp and covered with thorns
    • Correct answer: Growing thickly and richly
    • Cut low and kept neatly trimmed

    Luxuriant means growing thickly and richly; the dense weeds and creepers form walls on both sides of the path.

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does 'undiminished' mean as used in: "The priestess' voice came at longer intervals now, but its vigour was undiminished."?

    • Correct answer: Not weakened in any way
    • Suddenly much quieter
    • Growing hoarse and strained
    • Echoing from very far off

    Undiminished means not reduced; though Chielo chants less often, her voice is as strong as ever.

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12. 12

    Question 12. What does 'discern' mean as used in: "Ekwefi could now discern the figure of the priestess and her burden."?

    • To follow behind closely
    • To call out to someone
    • To lose sight of entirely
    • Correct answer: To perceive or make out

    To discern is to perceive something hard to see; the rising moon's light finally lets Ekwefi make out Chielo carrying Ezinma.

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