Part IV:  Poppy-shame!  The worst imaginable!

 

Alexander the Great

1.  The war with East Pakistan, now known as Bangladesh, was lost, and the Army is so dishonored that they can’t even win a soccer match!  How does General Raza Hyder, “Old Razor-Guts,” restore the army’s confidence?  (214)

 

1. Iskander Harappa, now President, cultivated a relationship with China and also tortured foreign ambassadors from everywhere—what was his strategy?  (194)

 

1. How did Isky die, and how did Rani figure it out?  What happens to Rani and Arjumand afterward?  (197)

 

1. The 18 shawls of shame—who knitted them and what is their testimony concerning the life and rule of Iskander Harappa? (200-204)

 

1. How is Iskander Harappa like Alexander the Great?  Is the comparison literal or ironical?

 

Woman in the Veil

1. What is Maulana Dawood’s final delusion and vision, and could it be true in some way?  (217)

 

1. What is the fate of Good News, and how does it reflect on the condition of Pakistani women?  (218, 241)

 

1. What (besides her childhood illnesses) causes the rise of the Beast in Sufiya Zinobia, and how does she address the problem?  (226-228)

 

1. What did Omar do when he could not have sex with Sufiya, and what is the outcome of this affair?

 

1. Talvar’s vision of Bilquis in a black burka—who is it really, and what does this error reveal about the veil?  (229)

 

Monologue of a Hanged Man

1. Raza has a delusional dream—what is it, and how does it seem remindful of Galip in the Black Book?  (242-243)

 

1. What happens to Omar when he tries to make love to Sufiya—how does he try to control the Beast?  (249)

 

1. How did Julius Caesar get to be a British general, and why?  (255)

 

1. When Raza Hyder became President (dictator), what kind of law did he introduce, and why did women march against him?  (262-266)

 

1. Where does the White Panther come from, and why does it follow a circular movement, closing in on Islamabad, the capital?  (267-273)

 

Part V:  The Judgment

 

1. Raza Hyder, Bilquis, Omar, and the 27 children of Good News, all flee to Q. disguised in black burkas—how is this shameful?

 

1. Omar and Raza contract malaria and have delusions of the house, Nishapur—what happens to the house in their delirious dreams, and how does it represent Pakistan?  (292)

 

1. There is a Shakil family myth concerning the treachery of two brothers and their wives; how does this myth echo the Greek House of Atreus and the Old Testament / Qur’an Cain and Abel?  (294)

 

1. What finally happens to Raza and Bilquis?  (299-300)

 

1. Omar gets the Necklace of Shoes at last, signifying . . . what?  What is his last dream, and what actually does happen to him and to Nishapur in the end?

Part IV:  Poppy-shame!  The worst imaginable!

 

Alexander the Great

1.  The war with East Pakistan, now known as Bangladesh, was lost, and the Army is so dishonored that they can’t even win a soccer match!  How does General Raza Hyder, “Old Razor-Guts,” restore the army’s confidence?  (214)

 

1. Iskander Harappa, now President, cultivated a relationship with China and also tortured foreign ambassadors from everywhere—what was his strategy?  (194)

 

1. How did Isky die, and how did Rani figure it out?  What happens to Rani and Arjumand afterward?  (197)

 

1. The 18 shawls of shame—who knitted them and what is their testimony concerning the life and rule of Iskander Harappa? (200-204)

 

1. How is Iskander Harappa like Alexander the Great?  Is the comparison literal or ironical?

 

Woman in the Veil

1. What is Maulana Dawood’s final delusion and vision, and could it be true in some way?  (217)

 

1. What is the fate of Good News, and how does it reflect on the condition of Pakistani women?  (218, 241)

 

1. What (besides her childhood illnesses) causes the rise of the Beast in Sufiya Zinobia, and how does she address the problem?  (226-228)

 

1. What did Omar do when he could not have sex with Sufiya, and what is the outcome of this affair?

 

1. Talvar’s vision of Bilquis in a black burka—who is it really, and what does this error reveal about the veil?  (229)

 

Monologue of a Hanged Man

1. Raza has a delusional dream—what is it, and how does it seem remindful of Galip in the Black Book?  (242-243)

 

1. What happens to Omar when he tries to make love to Sufiya—how does he try to control the Beast?  (249)

 

1. How did Julius Caesar get to be a British general, and why?  (255)

 

1. When Raza Hyder became President (dictator), what kind of law did he introduce, and why did women march against him?  (262-266)

 

1. Where does the White Panther come from, and why does it follow a circular movement, closing in on Islamabad, the capital?  (267-273)

 

Part V:  The Judgment

 

1. Raza Hyder, Bilquis, Omar, and the 27 children of Good News, all flee to Q. disguised in black burkas—how is this shameful?

 

1. Omar and Raza contract malaria and have delusions of the house, Nishapur—what happens to the house in their delirious dreams, and how does it represent Pakistan?  (292)

 

1. There is a Shakil family myth concerning the treachery of two brothers and their wives; how does this myth echo the Greek House of Atreus and the Old Testament / Qur’an Cain and Abel?  (294)

 

1. What finally happens to Raza and Bilquis?  (299-300)

 

1. Omar gets the Necklace of Shoes at last, signifying . . . what?  What is his last dream, and what actually does happen to him and to Nishapur in the end?