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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. In the essay "When Twitter Does What Journalism Cannot," on what does Gay say social media help people focus?

2. As mentioned in the essay "The Racism We All Carry," what sort of rules about racism have made Deen popular?

3. According to the essay "The Solace of Preparing Fried Foods," what is the name of the white woman who wrote The Help?

4. "Orange Is the New Black" is based on what genre of books, according to her essay "When Less Is More"?

5. According to the essay "Holding Out for a Hero," who did George Zimmerman kill?

Short Essay Questions

1. In the essay "When Less Is More," what phrase does Gay repeat and why does she make that decision?

2. In her esssay "Surviving Django," what are Gay's primary criticisms of "Django"?

3. In the essay "A Tale of Two Profiles," what did the "Rolling Stone" do that appalled Gay?

4. In the essay "The Solace of Preparing Fried Foods," why is Gay so disgusted with the novel and film "The Help"?

5. In the essay "Holding Out for a Hero," how does Gay define heroism?

6. In the essay "The Last Day of a Young Black Man," how is Oscar portrayed in the film?

7. In the essay "Beyond the Struggle Narrative," what types of roles is it acceptable for black women to play in hollywood films?

8. In the essay "The Morality of Tyler Perry," who is Tyler Perry?

9. In the essay "When Twitter Does What Journalism Cannot," why does Gay say we need both traditional journalism and social media?

10. According to the essay "The Last Day of a Young Black Man," what does Gay think of the film "Fruitvale Station"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay discussing sarcasm and humor in the novel. Choose three different examples of humor that are used in the essay collection and explain how Gay uses them to strengthen one of her overarching themes.

Essay Topic 2

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 3

Write an essay exploring how the author uses self implication to strengthen her themes of gender inequality, feminism, and/or reproductive freedom. How does she use her personal experiences (and sincerity) to illustrate her points?

(see the answer keys)

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