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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. In "The Vacuum," what is Sedaris's first thought when he hears a man shouting "Look at the fucking clown!" (147)?
(a) He thinks the man is insulting his outfit.
(b) He thinks the man is criticizing his writing.
(c) He thinks the man is having a hallucination.
(d) He thinks the man might attack him.

2. In "Pussytoes," where is Sedaris when he gets the news about his father's death?
(a) In the courtyard at Springmoor.
(b) In a restaurant in Atlantic Beach.
(c) In his and Hugh's home in New York.
(d) In a hotel room in Reno, Nevada.

3. In "The Vacuum," where is Sedaris when he sees the first signs that the new virus is starting to change things?
(a) North Carolina.
(b) France.
(c) Eastern Europe.
(d) South America.

4. In the anecdote Sedaris tells about the woman with the facial injury in "Smile, Beautiful," what was the women bitten by?
(a) A seal.
(b) A dog.
(c) A mountain lion.
(d) A giraffe.

5. In "Smile, Beautiful," what does a woman at a book signing tell Sedaris that brings him close to tears?
(a) He has a beautiful smile.
(b) He has inspired her to get her teeth fixed.
(c) His book changed her life.
(d) He reminds her that looks do not matter.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "The Vacuum," what does Sedaris buy at the gourmet store Eataly that he later feels he has to defend to Hugh?

2. In "Smile, Beautiful," what does Sedaris offer to pay for on behalf of the young man in the thrift shop?

3. Where does the title of the essay "Lady Marmalade" come from?

4. In "Pussytoes," what does Lou tell the president of Princeton University?

5. In "Happy-Go-Lucky," how does Sedaris characterize continuing media coverage of the Covid pandemic?

Short Essay Questions

1. What sentiment does Sedaris close the essay "The Vacuum" with, and what example does he give?

2. When describing protests in "Fresh-Caught Haddock," what two examples of White participants' vandalism does Sedaris give, and how do Black bystanders react?

3. In "Fresh-Caught Haddock," what examples of his own unconscious racism does Sedaris give?

4. In "Pussytoes," what disagreement do the siblings have about the photo of Lou to use with his obituary?

5. In "Lucky-Go-Happy," what rhetorical purpose unites Sedaris's choice to talk about varying face mask usage, fireworks stores, and gun sightings?

6. In "Smile, Beautiful," how do Hugh and Amy react after Sedaris reveals his newly corrected teeth?

7. In "Pearls," what does Sedaris theorize are the two main causes of relationship failures?

8. In "A Better Place," what is the rhetorical purpose of describing Lou's grave site in such detail?

9. In "Lady Marmalade," what anecdote does Sedaris share about his father's photography and his sister Lisa?

10. In "Happy-Go-Lucky," what two examples does Sedaris give of his father's tendency to exaggerate?

(see the answer keys)

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