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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What type of laws does Audre mention as being the reason she could find work in Stamford?

2. What is the name of the group of black lesbians Audre joins?

3. Where does Audre begin making plans to go to that she knows Eudora won't follow her to?

4. What is the name of the elderly woman Audre meets in Mexico?

5. Where does Audre find a job as an x-ray machine operator?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Audre's peak in her lesbianism described after she drops out of college?

2. What happens to Muriel to cause her split with Audre in the book?

3. How does Audre's friend Lynn cause problems between her and Muriel when she moves in with them?

4. How is Audre's relationship with Muriel first described in the book?

5. How is the Interlude: The Last of My Childhood Nightmares described in the book?

6. How does Audre describe her job at the New York Public Library?

7. How does Audre describe Stamford, Connecticut when she first moves there?

8. How does Audre describe her treatment in society as a black woman in comparison with her white lesbian friends?

9. How is Audre's relationship with Bea described in the book?

10. How is the New York lesbian scene described in Chapter 29?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the portrayal of women in the book. What lessons of empowerment is the author offering to women in this book? What does she hope for others to learn from this book regarding the diverse nature of women?

Essay Topic 2

The novel's genre offers many points of discussion with both its autobiographical and mythological material.

1) What aspects of the book appear to be purely autobiographical regarding the author's life?

2) What reasons would the author have for using mythological facts within the book alongside her personal accounts, does this help fill in gaps in the text?

3) How is the inclusion of both autobiographical and mythological methods in the book able to create a more well rounded portrayal of the author's life journey?

Essay Topic 3

Examine the importance that poetry and storytelling have in the book. How does the author use these devices as an outlet to express her own frustrations and desires about her social surroundings and humanity in general?

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