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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. The comment, “Your political enemies, smelling blood in the water, go after you harder” (519) offers an example of which of the following?

2. To which of the following does Obama note traveling in the five days following his first G20 summit?

3. How many countries does Obama note participate in the UN?

4. How many are reported dead in the Massey Energy Upper Big Branch Mine incident?

5. On what day does Obama receive word that he has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Obama note as his reasons for wanting to engage Medvedev at his first G20 summit?

2. What ideas does Obama note concerning war in preparing his Nobel acceptance speech?

3. What does Obama note are the effects of the Spanish flu on the world?

4. To what does the term “dignified transfer” refer in the memoir?

5. What does Obama note are reasons he could expect some success in the midterm elections?

6. What does Obama note are historical reasons midterm elections go poorly for the party in power?

7. What parts of the UN Charter does Obama note matched his mother’s viewpoint?

8. What does Obama lament that Gates sees as “politics” that he sees as “democracy as it was supposed to work” (436-37)?

9. How does Obama explain the increasing number of regulatory agencies and delegation of authority to them by Congress?

10. What reasons does Obama give for pressing strongly on nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Obama writes of “that most precious of gifts: the conviction of innocence, as well as the righteous indignation that comes with it” (274). What tone does the memoir adopt towards that gift? What in the memoir supports the idea? How does it do so?

Essay Topic 2

Consider the passage in Chapter 21 beginning with “In other words” and ending with “before moving forward” (496). What rhetorical structure is being deployed? What effect does the structure have? How does it achieve the effect?

Essay Topic 3

The memoir makes note of many, many names, mostly people who work for Obama in his offices and on his campaigns. What purpose might bringing up so many people serve? Does the memoir fulfill that purpose? How or how not?

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