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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 book does Gay reference in her essay "Beyond the Measure of Men" as an example of short stories that tell the many ways men and women failure one another?

2. In the essay "Beyond the Measure of Men," what is the ambiguous term that refers to untrue stories written by women?

3. What is the name of the protagonist of the Hunger Games series, as referenced in "What We Hunger For"?

4. In the essay "How We All Lose," what is the name of the first book that Gay criticizes for being too limited?

5. In "Girls, Girls, Girls," what is the film mentioned by Gay as an example of film revolutionizing female characters?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Typical First Year Professor," how does Gay react before teaching her first class?

2. Why does Gay suggest that safety is an illusion, in the essay "The Illusion of Safety"?

3. In "To Scratch, Claw, or Grope Clumsily or Frantically," what disturbing news does Gay receive while at the tournament?

4. In the essay "What We Hunger For," why is Gay afraid to say no to her boyfriend?

5. In the essay "I One Was Miss America," what is Gay's reaction after reading the sequel to the Sweet Valley High books?

6. In the essay "Girls, Girls, Girls," what is Gay's main criticism of the show "Girls"?

7. In the essay "The Careless Language of Sexual Violence," why does Gay find the rape that occurred in Texas so appalling?

8. IIn the essay "Beyond the Measure of Men," what does Gay say about female writers and the aspects of publishing over which they have control?

9. In the essay Peculiar Benefits, what does Gay say is most important to do when it comes to privilege?

10. In the essay "What We Hunger For," why does Gay admire the Hunger Games character Katniss?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay explaining the significance of the title of the book. How does the title support Gay's theme of feminism and overall narrative tone?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay arguing which of the essays contains the most literary merit. Describe the essay and explain what literary aspects deem the essay excellent.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay explaining how the author uses the characters Ana and Christian (from the Fifty Shades of Grey series) to illustrate her argument that fairy tales often require self sacrifice on the part of the female. Include a clear thesis statement and ample textual evidence to support your claim.

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