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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. Which identical twin does the narrator in "The Mark of Cain" prefer?

2. What does a crazy woman bring to her child's school for a snack that another mother does not like in the story "Difficult Women"?

3. What kind of car does William Livingston III drive?

4. What channel does Candy tell Sarah to watch for inspiration for her strip dances?

5. What is Bianca's husband's name?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Carolina tell Savvie she decided to marry Darryl?

2. Why is William Livingston briefly appalled when he finds out that Sarah is mixed-race in "La Negra Blanca"?

3. What event eventually brings Kate and Magnus back together?

4. What does Marcy like about the exercise classes in the story "Florida"?

5. Why does the young, working-class couple watch reality television in the story "Florida"?

6. In the story "Difficult Women," what is it about death that makes girls more interesting?

7. What is the basis of Carolina's and Savvie's strong bond in "I Will Follow You"?

8. What traumatic event did Kate experience with her long-term partner before meeting Magnus?

9. What does Kate's elderly landlady tell her in the story "North Country" when she meets her for the first time?

10. Why do Savvie and Carolina not have to worry about money or finances?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the story "Water, All Its Weight," both Bianca's parents and her husband eventually abandon her because of the rot and decay that accompany her wherever she goes. Write an essay exploring how Bianca seems to handle being abandoned by the people closest to her at different stages of her life.

Essay Topic 2

In the story "I Will Follow You," Savvie knows exactly what her sister Carolina means when she says she married Darryl because she would be no good to a really good man, and Darryl is not a really bad man. Write an essay explaining how the trauma and abuse of Savvie's and Carolina's childhood abduction affects each of their adult relationships with men and with each other.

Essay Topic 3

In several stories, including "North Country," "Break All the Way Down," and "Strange Gods," stillbirth or the sudden, tragic loss of a very young child are recurring themes. Write an essay analyzing how Gay uses the topic of grief over a child's death to develop the main characters in several of her stories, citing specific examples to the text in your answer.

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