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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 do the narrator and her husband pour over themselves when they go deer hunting in the story "I Am a Knife"?

2. What is the name of the narrator's sister's boyfriend in "I Am A Knife"?

3. Who is the narrator's lover in "Bone Density"?

4. How long after meeting did the stone thrower and the glass woman get married?

5. What does the stone thrower's wife most enjoy about her day?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Teresa tell Stephanie that surprises her at the end of the story "In the Event of My Father's Death"?

2. What does the narrator of "Bone Density" find in her husband's suitcase that confirms her knowledge that he is having an affair?

3. What does Father Michael realize at the end of "Bad Priest" about his mother's knowledge of his private life?

4. What Bible story did Nora Minty, Father Michael's mother, tell to Father Michael many times?

5. Why is Natasha in the story "Break All the Way Down" in her relationship with the man she calls her boyfriend?

6. Why does the narrator's mother in the story "A Pat" tell her to befriend the saddest and most desperate people?

7. How did Hanna and Laura first become friends?

8. How did Father Michael first meet Rebekah?

9. What secret of her own does the narrator keep from her unfaithful husband David in "Bone Density"?

10. Why does the narrator in "Open Marriage" seem confident her husband will not follow through on his aspirations to have affairs with other women?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout this book of short stories, Gay explores the lives of many different kinds of women of different races, ages, socioeconomic classes, and sexual orientations. Many of her female characters have suffered terrible traumas and abuses. Why do you think Gay titled her book Difficult Women, and how do you think she would define so-called "difficult woman" after reading all of the stories in this collection?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing why the stone-thrower's wife, the unnamed glass woman, decides not to confront the stone-thrower about his ongoing affair with his mistress. Cite specific references from the story to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing the metaphors Gay uses in the story "The Sacrifice of Darkness" to explain the desperation and subjugation of the working classes. Cite specific references from the text in your answer.

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