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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 was considered to be the murder weapon in James Craig Anderson's death?

2. What does the author describe around the collar of her big coat in Chapter 5?

3. What literary word employed by the author in Chapter 5 refers to a word that can function by itself as a noun phrase and that refers to either the participants or something else?

4. The author writes in Chapter 6, "In a landscape drawn from an ocean bed, you can't drive yourself" what?

5. What word from Chapter 5 means censored or obscured?

Short Essay Questions

1. What scenario does the author present when an unnamed man is arrested in Chapter 6?

2. What color is explored in Chapter 5? What does this color represent for the author?

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

4. What does the author state regarding the Jena Six case in Chapter 6?

5. How does the author's language and narrative style change in Chapter 5?

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

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

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

9. How does the author describe the past in Chapter 5?

10. How is the theme of anger explored in Chapter 6?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Define and discuss "affirmative action" and how it is applied in the book. When was affirmative action introduced in the United States? How did it change race relations? How did it impact the quality of life for African Americans?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss the images reproduced in Citizen: An American Lyric. How does the inclusion of these images help to support the book's themes? What impact do the images have on you as a reader? What symbolism is seen in the images?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the theme of identity in Citizen: An American Lyric. How is identity formed? How are African American identities influenced differently than white identities? How does language relate to identity?

(see the answer keys)

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