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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Where were Sedaris's friends living when the man drove a vehicle into their home?
(a) At an airport.
(b) In a converted church.
(c) At a marina.
(d) In a national park.

2. Where did Sedaris once unexpectedly find a gun?
(a) In a pantry.
(b) In a medicine cabinet.
(c) Under a bed.
(d) In a desk drawer.

3. In "Bruised," what does Sedaris criticize as lacking charm?
(a) Hypermarkets.
(b) Modern highways.
(c) Big cities.
(d) The English language.

4. In "Hurricane Season," what motivates Hugh to lock Gretchen and Sedaris out of the house?
(a) They imitate the pinching motions of crabs, implying that Hugh is being unreasonable.
(b) They tease Hugh about the name of the rental house.
(c) They agree with a renter about the dilapidated condition of some chairs.
(d) They tell him that they think the fish is overcooked.

5. In "Hurricane Season," what does Sedaris recall Hugh yelling at Lisa for one Christmas in Sussex?
(a) She wore a coat to the dinner table.
(b) She drank gin straight from the bottle.
(c) She wiped her hands on her jeans instead of on a towel.
(d) She set a drink down without a coaster.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "To Serbia with Love," what do the problems Sedaris lists with potential travel companions have in common?

2. In "Highfalutin," what does Amy describe cutting up while under the influence of psychedelics?

3. In "A Speech to the Graduates," what is Sedaris's purpose in mentioning Gretchen's program of study and Amy's work at Second City?

4. What comedian also named "David" do the nurses confuse Sedaris with in "Father Time"?

5. What does the Bushmaster ad that Sedaris sees explicitly associate guns with?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Hurricane Season," what contrast does Sedaris explore between his reception of Hugh's criticisms of his family and his family's criticisms of Hugh?

2. In "Father Time," what does Sedaris tell Harrison and Austen about whom they should try to be more like, and why?

3. In "Highfalutin," what two things does Amy do while she and Sedaris are shopping that he finds funny but also mortifying?

4. In "Themes and Variations," what experience does Sedaris say shaped his desire to interact warmly with his fans?

5. In "Themes and Variations," what kinds of people does Sedaris resist giving money to?

6. In "To Serbia with Love," what criticism does Sedaris level against the American tourists Patsy deals with in Paris?

7. In "Active Shooter," what contrast does Sedaris see between the drills he recalls in his own elementary school and the ones being practiced today?

8. In "Unbuttoned," how does Sedaris contrast his feelings about his own medical procedure with his father's behavior?

9. Describe the condition of Lou's house when the Sedaris siblings go to start clearing it out In "Unbuttoned."

10. In "Active Shooter," what is the rhetorical purpose of the anecdote about Lisa believing a story she read in The Onion?

(see the answer keys)

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