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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. Why does the author say he never felt poor when living alone with Patricia?

2. What did Patricia do when the author kept pestering her for toffee apples?

3. What did the vet reveal to the author about his dog, Fufi, after she died?

4. Why was the author difficult for his caretakers to handle when he was very little?

5. What crime did the author's parents commit when they had him?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Patricia believe that a demon was in her house?

2. Why were Japanese people classified as being white under apartheid?

3. How did Patricia handle disputes with the author once he was too old to be tricked?

4. What does the author say he has in common with the other children in Soweto during the story "Trevor, Pray"?

5. How did the young Trevor Noah explain the comparative length of black church services compared to white church services?

6. How did South African schools founded by British missionaries differ from Bantu schools founded by Afrikaners, according to the author?

7. Why did Trevor Noah yell at his mother after they ran from the mini-bus?

8. What reasons does the author give for saying it was a "lie" (64) that the tribal homelands of South Africa were a place where native South Africans could be free?

9. How did Patricia react when the author was punished for stealing the eucharist?

10. How does the author describe the prevalence of traditional South African beliefs in the foreword to the story, "Trevor, Pray"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The South African government oppressed its people racially, and the collection "Born a Crime" goes into great detail about how this manifested economically. Write an essay analyzing the relationship between race and economic class as depicted by the author.

Essay Topic 2

At many different points throughout the collection "Born a Crime," Trevor Noah describes his family's fluctuating social and economic status. Write an essay analyzing the role that poverty and classism played in challenging and facilitating the author's understanding of himself as he grew up.

Essay Topic 3

According to the collection "Born a Crime," crime was a significant component of Trevor Noah's life. Write an essay analyzing the role that crime played in guiding the author's identity and what self-realizations crime led him to.

(see the answer keys)

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