View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 3: "Part Three: The Eight Pillars of Caste".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy: The Jatis and the Mudsill," what is the rhetorical purpose of including information about Hammond's nieces?
(a) It impeaches Hammond's character.
(b) It supports Wilkerson's point about the hypocrisy of the upper caste.
(c) It demonstrates the subordinate role of women in America.
(d) It clarifies the relationship of the Hammond quotes to Wilkerson's claims.

2. In Wilkerson's anecdote about the house inspector, how does he "see past the plaster" (17)?
(a) By using an x-ray machine.
(b) By using his professional experience.
(c) By reading the blueprints.
(d) By using an infrared camera.

3. According to Wilkerson, who is at the top of the "ladder of humanity" created by colonists in North America?
(a) English Protestants.
(b) Christians.
(c) White men.
(d) Northern Europeans.

4. On page 6, Wilkerson refers to white "preeminence." What quality is she referring to?
(a) Unjustified rage.
(b) Having the highest rank or position.
(c) Using language and mannerisms that indicate superiority.
(d) Devotion to tradition or already existing institutions.

5. What is the name of Gunnar Myrdal's 1944 study of race in America?
(a) America's Race Problem.
(b) Caste in America.
(c) An American Dilemma.
(d) The American Web of Class and Race.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to "Pillar Number Four: Purity versus Pollution," what did the United States use to "curate" its population (123)?

2. In "Pillar Number Seven: Terror as Enforcement, Cruelty as a Means of Control," what common misunderstanding of the slave system in America does Wilkerson dispute?

3. As Wilkerson explains on page 9, under what circumstances can mental health professionals make a diagnosis public?

4. According to Wilkerson in "The Second Pillar: Heritability," what distinguishes "caste" from "class"?

5. In "Through the Fog of Delhi to the Parallels in India and America," what is one of the main differences that Wilkerson notes between caste in America and caste in India?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 441 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample