ANSWER KEY SHORT ANSWER STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS –

Cry, The Beloved Country

Directions: Using the novel "Cry, The Beloved Country," by Alan Paton, answer the following questions in COMPLETE setences. Be sure to support answers from the text. Be prepared to discuss in class.

Chapters 1-5

1.  Paragraphs two and three in Chapter 1 sharply contrast. Explain the significance of these two
paragraphs in terms of the novel's central theme. (Come back to this later if you can't answer
it at first.)

2.  Identify and characterize Stephen, John, Msimangu, Mrs. Lithebe, and Gertrude.

3.  Explain the importance or meaning of the following quotation: "Once such a thing is opened, it cannot be shut again."

4.  Why did Stephen Kumalo go to Johannesburg?

5.  What does "Umfundisi" mean?

6.      "The journey had begun. And now the fear back again ...." What fears did Kumalo have?

7.      What happened to Kumalo when he first arrived in Johannesburg?

8.      Describe Gertrude's sickness.

9.      Why is Gertrude's sickness upsetting to Kumalo?

10.  What is Kumalo's brother John doing in Johannesburg?

11.  "The tragedy is not that things are broken. The tragedy is that they are not mended again." Explain what Msimangu meant. (Ch. 5)

12.  "It is fear that rules this land." Who fears whom?