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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 did the young South Carolina woman say happened to her two boys?

2. What change was made at the NY Times in Rick's first article?

3. When Rick went home in 1988, how long had it been since he spent the holidays there?

4. What kind of questions did Rick often find himself answering to the students at Harvard?

5. What happened to Jean-Bertrand Aristide in 1990?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Rick go home in the Spring of 1994, and what did he write about the whole experience?

2. Why didn't Rick remain married to his young bride?

3. Who was the Serial Diner, and what did he teach Rick?

4. What comparisons did Rick make between himself and his father? How did he feel about the comparisons?

5. What experiences did Rick have in Miami?

6. In winter of 1994, where was Rick and what was he writing about?

7. What gifts did Rick give his mother after he became a successful journalist, and what gift did he want to give his mother? How did he feel about these gifts?

8. Why did Rick never drink alone?

9. What did Rick experience when he first returned to the South as the Southern Correspondent for the New York Times?

10. What were the details of the stories that Rick told about the bodegas in New York City?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did the school system create Sam's life for him? Was this fair? What choices did Sam have? Do children know and understand their choices? Did Sam?

Essay Topic 2

What historical lesson did Rick Bragg teach his readers about Haiti? How has this story affected Rick, and what did he hope the story would continue to do to his readers?

Essay Topic 3

Explain the quote found on page 98: "But what really kills you on that other side are the people--the smiling, care-free people--who can just as easily look over into your side, and turn their face away." Explain it in terms of the memoir and the truism in life.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,186 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample