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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 6: "Part Six: Backlash".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is the traditional Indian word for "caste"?
(a) Kshatriya.
(b) Varna.
(c) Dalit.
(d) Vaishya.

2. In "Chapter Six: The Measure of Humanity," where does Wilkerson say the term "Caucasian" came from?
(a) An eighteenth century novel about a fictional people who migrated from Central Europe to Western Europe.
(b) A Sanskrit word that originally referred not to race but to caste.
(c) A German professor who thought a skull from the Caucasus Mountains was especially attractive.
(d) A long-discredited theory about human origins in Western Russia.

3. In "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste," what mistake does Wilkerson believe Democrats make with regard to their most loyal voters?
(a) Failing to think through the consequences of their "wish list."
(b) Failing to follow through on promises made to them.
(c) Making their concerns a low priority.
(d) Making their concerns the central focus.

4. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," Wilkerson relays the story of a Black woman who visits a new white neighbor. What is the white neighbor's response?
(a) He assumes that she works for the dry cleaners he is expecting to pick up his clothing.
(b) He calls the police and reports and intruder in his home.
(c) He calls for his wife, because he assumes that she is there to apply for their nanny position.
(d) He assumes that she is trying to steal the packages that he has on his porch.

5. In the opening of "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," what does Wilkerson call "The greatest departure from the script of the American caste system" (311)?
(a) The election of Barack Obama.
(b) The toppling of the Confederate monuments.
(c) Reconstruction.
(d) The Voting Rights Act.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "A Long-Running Play and the Emergence of Caste in America," what does Wilkerson say Americans want to dismiss as a "sad, dark chapter" of American history (43)?

2. In "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste," Wilkerson says that Clinton might have suffered from the "Bradley Effect." What does this mean?

3. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," who follows and questions Wilkerson when she is in an airport?

4. According to "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," what percentage of White voters voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012?

5. In the conference described in "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," what difficulty does Wilkerson face?

(see the answer key)

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