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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 does Ernestine imagine Gerte does in Act Two, Scene 1?

2. In Act Two, Scene 2, what does Ernestine say she likes to do?

3. What does Lily sell at a pawn shop?

4. Why does Ernestine say Ermina will not go to the dance?

5. In Act Two, Scene 2, how many invitations to the dance does Ermina say she has?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Gerte’s upbringing affect her views on race?

2. What are Lily’s views on African traditions?

3. How does Ernestine describe the Crump family’s routine?

4. What effect does Ernestine say Gerte has on Ermina?

5. What does Gerte say and do that indicates that she is a fear-based person?

6. Why does Godfrey say he needs Father Divine?

7. Why does Lily handle the flooding in the yard alone?

8. What does Gerte say and do that indicates her naïveté about America?

9. What does Gerte say and do to indicate she is trying to fit in when she meets Ermina and Ernestine?

10. What are Lily’s views on race and fashion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

After the death of their mother, Ernestine and Ermina as left without a key authority figure at a critical time in their development, and both Lily and Gerte strive to step into the void left by Sandra, while the father struggles to manage as a single parent of two girls at a crucial stage. Write an essay examining the role that parenting plays in the play.

Essay Topic 2

Following the death of a family member, different characters employ different coping mechanisms – ranging from politics and religion to alcohol and entertainment – to self-medicate their grief. Write an essay examining the role that escapism plays in the play.

Essay Topic 3

One of the central characters, Ernestine, has an obsession with Hollywood and movies and regularly blurs the lines between fantasy and reality with imagined asides. Write an essay examining the role that arts and entertainment play in the play.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 755 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample