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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 is the best definition of "endogamy" as used in "The Third Pillar: Endogamy and the Control of Marriage and Mating"?

2. 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?

3. In "Pillar Number One: Divine Will and the Laws of Nature," what is Wilkerson's central claim?

4. In "Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy: The Jatis and the Mudsill," what is the rhetorical purpose of including information about Hammond's nieces?

5. In "Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy: The Jatis and the Mudsill," how does Wilkerson say North Carolina prevented Blacks from achieving economic independence?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the rhetorical purpose of stressing the length of time that slavery existed in America?

2. What explanation does Wilkerson give of the justification for slavery in Christian scriptures in "Pillar Number One: Divine Will and the Laws of Nature"?

3. Explain the analogy that Wilkerson makes between caste and a play.

4. Explain the analogy that Wilkerson makes in "The Vitals of History."

5. What is the rhetorical purpose of including the anecdote about Willie James Howard in "Pillar Number Three: Endogamy and the Control of Marriage and Mating"?

6. Summarize the analogy Wilkerson makes between the thawing of the Siberian permafrost and the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

7. For what reason does Wilkerson say that race is a social concept, not a biological one?

8. What is the rhetorical purpose of Wilkerson telling the story about the man who refuses to believe that she works for the New York Times?

9. In "The Hierarchy of Trace Amounts: Griffes, Marabons, and Sangmelees," what are the words "Griffes, Marabons, and Sangmelees," and what point do they illustrate?

10. How does Wilkerson use the colonial census as support for her argument about caste in colonial America?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay in which you trace the "journey" to inclusion among the "White" caste of an immigrant group whose status was questionable at one time in American history (the Irish, Italians, etc.). In the second part of your essay, consider how this information either supports, refutes, or qualifies Wilkerson's work. Use textual evidence to support your claims. Be sure to cite your sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Write an argument of definition in which you evaluate Wilkerson's definition of caste as you make a case for your own definition. Offer textual evidence for your claims, and be sure to cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay that makes and defends a claim regarding one of the "Pillars" of caste that Wilkerson lays out in "Part Three: The Eight Pillars of Caste." Use textual support for your claim, and be sure to cite all sources in MLA format.

(see the answer keys)

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