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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 word from Chapter 5 means relating or denoting the writing of letters?

2. What color is described repeatedly throughout Chapter 5?

3. Who shot and killed Trayvon Martin?

4. In a poetic monologue in Chapter 6, the author writes, "The hearts of my brothers are" what?

5. With whom was the collaboration for the script described in Chapter 6?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does the author discuss eating cereal in Chapter 5?

2. How are "words" presented in Chapter 5?

3. How does the author juxtapose the reality of Hurrican Katrina victims with their depiction in the media?

4. What theme is explored when the narrator describes her experience in the drug store in Chapter 5?

5. What assertions does the author make regarding the James Craig Anderson incident in Chapter 6?

6. How does the author compare the Rodney King beating and the death of Mark Duggan in Chapter 6?

7. What theme is explored by the author in examining the Trayvon Martin case in Chapter 6?

8. How is the theme of the pain of prejudice explored in Chapter 6?

9. How is the theme of being forgotten explored in Chapter 6?

10. What is the author referring to when she writes "I was creating a life study of a monumental first person, a Brahmin first person"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Define "microagression" and discuss how this term applies to Citizen: An American Lyric. Who coined this term? How does it apply in the different scenarios presented by the author? What are your experiences with microagressions?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the theme and concept of "presence." What does presence mean? How does it apply to race and dealing with racism? What does the author equate presence with? How is presence connected to breath?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Don Imus and the controversy described in Chapter 3. Whom did Imus make racist slurs against? What were the repercussions of Imus's comments? How did Imus's comments influence racial tensions in the country?

(see the answer keys)

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