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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What novel does Baldwin criticize as a more modern piece of shallow propaganda from the Negro experience?
(a) Carmen Jones.
(b) Native Son.
(c) Black No More.
(d) Uncle Tom's Cabin.

2. What novel does Baldwin compare Uncle Tom's Cabin to?
(a) Othello.
(b) Little Women.
(c) Black Boy.
(d) Native Son.

3. According to Baldwin, at what point does the making of an American begin?
(a) At the point that the person enters the country and adopts the venture of the adopted land.
(b) At the point where the individual reaches Ellis Island in New York.
(c) At the point where the individual rejects all other ties and history to other nations and adopts the venture of the adopted land.
(d) At the point where the individual rejects all other ties and history to other nations and receives their U.S. citizenship from the government.

4. What does Baldwin say it means for the Negro to be religious?
(a) He stands in fear of beast.
(b) He stands in fear of creation.
(c) He stands in fear of man.
(d) He stands in fear of God.

5. What stereotypical trait is shared by the female and male leads in the film Carmen Jones?
(a) Dark colored skin.
(b) Blue eyes.
(c) Fine hair.
(d) Light colored skin.

6. According to Baldwin, if black faces cannot be made white then what other way can they be changed in order to be less offensive to white society?
(a) Blank.
(b) Clear.
(c) Light.
(d) White.

7. According to Baldwin, what color is associated with evil?
(a) Green.
(b) Black.
(c) Red.
(d) White.

8. What Hollywood studio produced the film Carmen Jones?
(a) Twentieth Century Fox.
(b) Universal Studios.
(c) Walt Disney Studios.
(d) MGM Studios.

9. Although it is known that African Americans are not biologically or mentally inferior, what occurred during the World War II?
(a) The troops were integrated.
(b) The troops were segregated.
(c) The troops were evaluated.
(d) African Americans were not allowed to fight.

10. Why is the cleanliness of the Carmen Jones movie set necessary for white audiences?
(a) The cleanliness makes white audiences more comfortable with seeing Negroes in familiar situations.
(b) The cleanliness makes white audiences more comfortable with the role of the lead male Negro.
(c) The cleanliness makes white audiences view the black actors as equals.
(d) The cleanliness makes white audiences want to watch more Negro movies.

11. Which of the following artists was mentioned in the Harlem Ghetto chapter as having a column in the People's Voice?
(a) Joe Adams.
(b) Dorothy Dandridge.
(c) Lena Horne.
(d) Harry Belafonte.

12. According to Baldwin, what characteristic does Dorothy Dandridge have that Pearl Bailey lacks?
(a) Charisma.
(b) Aggression.
(c) Sexiness.
(d) Shyness.

13. In what era did James Baldwin write Notes of a Native Son?
(a) Slavery era.
(b) Civil rights era.
(c) Pre-civil rights era.
(d) Colonial.

14. What does Baldwin regard as the most important thing about the film Carmen Jones?
(a) The impression it leaves about the realities of Negro life.
(b) The questions it leaves about the relationship between Whites and Negroes.
(c) The questions it leaves in the mind relate more to inferior life of Americans.
(d) The changes it suggests about the lives of Negroes.

15. According to Baldwin, why has the face of the Negro changed over time?
(a) Because of the white man's need for making Negroes as white as possible in order to interact with them.
(b) Because African Americans refuted the stereotypical images Aunt Jemima.
(c) Because of the white man's need for making Negroes cook and clean the white man's home.
(d) Because of the portrayal of Uncle Tom.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Baldwin, what has led to unforeseen paradoxical distress?

2. What is the theme of Baldwin's Notes of a Native Son?

3. What has made some changes in the face of the Negro?

4. According to Baldwin, what color are the robes of the saved?

5. Why does Baldwin think it is safe for the film Carmen Jones to utilize an all-Negro cast?

(see the answer keys)

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