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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 meal does the family gather for the next day?

2. Whose picture does Piri look for in his father's belongings?

3. In what city does Piri go with two octoroons to have sex?

4. What kind of drug does Piri start using?

5. What does Piri get an hour of every day in prison?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the system the gang uses to rob bars and stores.

2. What problems does Gerald say he has being part Negro?

3. What are Piri and Brew's plans in Section 5?

4. Why must Piri and Brew sit at the back of the bus?

5. What does Piri's father tell him in at breakfast in Section 5?

6. Why does Little say he did not throw more punches at Piri's midsection?

7. Why does Brew think the term "boy" is acceptable?

8. What work does Piri find in Section 7?

9. Why does Rocky want to fight with Piri?

10. What does Piri think the girl who rubbed against him on the train said to her friends?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine racism in the South.

1) What were the differences between race relations in the South to race relations in the North in the Fifties?

2) In what way does Piri not understand the Southern culture and what people like Brew have been through?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss with the students first person point of view. Why do the students think first person point of view is not necessarily reliable? What moments in the book do the students think are not so reliable and why? With the students discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using the first person.

Essay Topic 3

Compare the treatment of Puerto Ricans to African Americans in American society.

1) What is the history of Puerto Ricans in American society?

2) What is the history of African Americans in American society?

3) What evidence is there to prove that Puerto Ricans have been treated better in American society in the mid 20th century?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 815 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample