View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What feels strange to the narrator of Poem Thirteen?

2. According to Poem Ten, at what time do women from Louisiana shell peas?

3. How are the ladies in blue, yellow, purple, and orange dancing at the start of Sequence Four?

4. What does the narrator in Poem Fifteen think black woman deal with too much?

5. Which character narrates Poem Fourteen?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Poem nineteen, "A Nite with Beau Wille Brown," is a longer narrative than many of the other poems in the play. Why do you think Shange chose to make this poem a longer narrative than the others in the play? How else does this poem differ from the others in the play? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 2

Why does Shange choose not to name the characters? What is the significance of not naming the characters? How would naming the characters change the dynamics of the play? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Why does the playwright choose to craft the narrative of the play out of poems instead of conversational text? What are the pros and cons of using this technique? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 257 words (approx. 1 page at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample