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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 poet inspired the author while at Howard University?

2. Who is the Tolstoy of the Zulus, according to Coats?

3. How did the author's father react when the author threatened his 9th grade teacher?

4. Coats quotes that sixty percent of all young black men who drop out of high school will:

5. What sorts of toys was the author not allowed to have as a child?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did the author's mother encourage him to write?

2. What revelation does the author have about the European perception of Africans during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries?

3. What influence did Malcom X have on the author as a young man?

4. What is the author's interpretation of "The Dream"?

5. What role did violence play in the author's childhood?

6. According to the author, how have American police departments been given the right to destroy black bodies without the fear of recrimination?

7. What assumptions does the author make about PG County (Prince George's County) police officers and why?

8. What conflicting thoughts does the author have about the civil rights movement of the 1960s?

9. How does the author compare his childhood to that of his son?

10. What is meant by "Tolstoy is the Tolstoy of the Zulus?"

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare how the events of September 11, 2001 affected the author with how a majority of Americans reacted to the tragedy at the time. Did the attacks eventually unify or divide the nation? Did the author feel a part of that movement? Why or why not? In your opinion, does his opinion represent that of a majority of black Americans?

Essay Topic 2

How does the author compare his experiences with public education to the expectations that society has for black people? What does it mean when he says that “the schools were not concerned with curiosity,” but with “compliance” ? What statement might the author be making about racial injustice in the American school system?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the author's encounter with his unnamed French friend in Paris. What reservations did Coates have throughout the entire day? Why was he uncomfortable having his friend pay for the meal? What past experiences might have prompted him to insist that his friend walk out of the restaurant first? Describe what the author means when he says he feels he missed out on part of the experience because his eyes "were blindfolded by fear."

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,213 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample