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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The author says in Chapter 4 that "truth be told, you could no more control those sighs than" what?
(a) "That which brings the sighs about."
(b) "The oppression of my people."
(c) "The lies of history."
(d) "You could control your own mind."

2. What does the word "iterate" mean in Chapter 4?
(a) To perform or utter repeatedly.
(b) To conjure or invent.
(c) To deplete.
(d) To deceive or lie.

3. What does the author describe buying from the cashier when out with her friend in Chapter 3?
(a) A college textbook.
(b) A dress and heels.
(c) A steak and a glass of wine.
(d) A sandwich and a Pellegrino.

4. What does the author describe the passenger in her car telling her in Chapter 1?
(a) "That his work was examining race in America."
(b) "He didn't care for his family or his friends."
(c) "That his dean is making him hire a person of color when there are so many great writers out there."
(d) "That his wife is leaving him for the dean with whom she's been having an affair."

5. What does the author refer to "doubt" as in Chapter 1?
(a) Reactionary.
(b) Visionary.
(c) Inexorable.
(d) Implicit.

6. What does the author's friend say when the author is questioned by the cashier in Chapter 3?
(a) "Back off."
(b) Nothing.
(c) "What is your problem?"
(d) "Who are you to ask?"

7. What is the name of the girl who sits behind the protagonist in the school room in Chapter 1?
(a) Maria.
(b) Michelle.
(c) Mary Catherine.
(d) Sarah Anne.

8. Why does the woman at the cafe tell the author her son was not accepted at the college of her choice in Chapter 1?
(a) Because of affirmative action.
(b) Because of his lack of extracurricular activities.
(c) Because of his lack of ambition.
(d) Because of his failing grades.

9. What tennis tournament have the Williams sisters boycotted since 2001?
(a) The Indian Wells Masters.
(b) The Madrid Open.
(c) The ATP World Tour Finals.
(d) The Miami Open.

10. What does the real estate woman repeatedly say to the author's friend when she is showing the author her house in Chapter 3?
(a) That she reminds her of her sister.
(b) That she is welcome to return and visit.
(c) How uncomfortable she makes her feel.
(d) How comfortable she makes her feel.

11. What word from Chapter 4 refers to a sentimental longing for the past?
(a) Allusion.
(b) Nostalgia.
(c) Cultivation.
(d) Recompense.

12. What does the author claim the world says not to wear in the house in Chapter 4?
(a) Shoes.
(b) Sunglasses.
(c) Gloves.
(d) Hats.

13. The author describes Hennessy Youngman in Chapter 2, saying that "He advises black artists to cultivate" what?
(a) "A wider world-view."
(b) "An expression of desire."
(c) "An angry nigger exterior."
(d) "A beacon of yesterday."

14. The author concludes Chapter 3 by saying that what "shouldn't be an ambition"?
(a) "New paths to progress."
(b) "Justice."
(c) "Just getting along."
(d) "Reexamining history."

15. The author describes hearing two men outside a conference room in Chapter 3, when one says to the other that "being around black people is like" what?
(a) "Being amongst fellow compatriots."
(b) "Watching a foreign film without translation."
(c) "Being in a pool of fish."
(d) "Wandering alone in a desert."

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the word "denigrate" mean in Chapter 3?

2. What word from Chapter 2 means to have commercialized something?

3. What does the world say about memory and the past, according to the author in Chapter 4?

4. In Chapter 3, the author describes Judith Baker discussing what makes language hurtful. She writes that Baker's response is "We suffer from the condition of being" what?

5. Where does the school girl attend school in Chapter 1?

(see the answer keys)

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