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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 2: "Part Two: The Arbitrary Construction of Human Divisions".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "A Long-Running Play and the Emergence of Caste in America," where does Wilkerson say that the American caste system was born?
(a) In the Virginia colony.
(b) In England.
(c) In South Carolina.
(d) In the American South.

2. In the beginning of "Chapter Six: The Measure of Humanity," what physical characteristic is the basis for Wilkerson's imaginary caste system?
(a) Height.
(b) Shoe size.
(c) Sex.
(d) Eye color.

3. At what famous Alabama bridge did the police violently attack peaceful protesters on their way to Montgomery?
(a) The Seven Mile Bridge.
(b) The New River Gorge Bridge.
(c) The Edmund Pettus Bridge.
(d) The Benson Bridge.

4. As Wilkerson explains on page 9, under what circumstances can mental health professionals make a diagnosis public?
(a) When the person is deceased.
(b) When the person is not a paying client.
(c) When the person is a celebrity or other national media figure.
(d) When the person presents a danger to themselves or other people.

5. In the opening anecdote of the book, what escapes from the melting permafrost?
(a) SARS-CoV-2.
(b) Nuclear waste.
(c) Anthrax.
(d) Mercury.

Short Answer Questions

1. In the page 15 sentence "An old house is its own kind of devotional, a dowager aunt with a story to be coaxed out of her," the idea that the house has a story to tell is an example of what literary technique?

2. On page 68 of "Chapter Six: The Measure of Humanity," what does Wilkerson say is "one of the most contentious and misunderstood" words in American culture?

3. Where does the word "caste" come from?

4. On page 16, Wilkerson says that people adjust to the "idiosyncrasies" of an old house. What is she saying that they adjust to?

5. On page 6, Wilkerson calls a financial crisis "cataclysmic." What kind of crisis was it?

(see the answer key)

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