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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Before the discovery of a number of stories focused on urban environments, how many such stories by Zora Neale Hurston were previously thought to exist?
(a) 3.
(b) 5.
(c) 0.
(d) 1.

2. Which character ultimately decides to allow John's body to float down the river once it is obvious that he is dead?
(a) Alfred.
(b) Matty.
(c) Stella.
(d) Jackson.

3. What gesture does Isis make that serves to "heap kindling on" her grandmother's "already burning ire" (75)?
(a) A smile.
(b) An eye-roll.
(c) A shrug.
(d) A smirk.

4. What is the name of the woman whom Beau impregnates in the story entitled "Black Death"?
(a) Karen.
(b) Sadie.
(c) Dolly.
(d) Docia.

5. Who orders Isis to get down from the gate post and rake the yard?
(a) Grandma Jones.
(b) Grandma Watts.
(c) Grandma George.
(d) Grandma Potts.

6. What term does the narrator of "Black Death" apply to white people?
(a) Allies.
(b) Oppressors.
(c) Materialists.
(d) Nihilists.

7. What type of body of water lies 300 feet beyond the door of John's family home?
(a) A river.
(b) A lake.
(c) A pond.
(d) A reservoir.

8. Sam does NOT decide to acquire which item when he becomes determined to win Stella's favor?
(a) A new suit.
(b) A shave.
(c) A haircut.
(d) A car.

9. What objects does John like to place in the water near his home in order to pretend he is following them?
(a) Leaves.
(b) Twigs.
(c) Crickets.
(d) Paper boats.

10. How many of the stories in the collection have never before been presented to a modern audience?
(a) 4.
(b) 2.
(c) 8.
(d) 12.

11. How old is Sam when he falls back into his addiction to gambling?
(a) 19.
(b) 25.
(c) 21.
(d) 31.

12. John agrees to help save what type of structure in the face of an approaching storm?
(a) A train platform.
(b) A bus depot.
(c) A bridge.
(d) A water tower.

13. The boy at the center of the story "A Bit of Harlem" tells the young woman that he will come back on which holiday?
(a) Christmas Eve.
(b) Easter.
(c) Halloween.
(d) Christmas Day.

14. With which writer did Zora Neale Hurston have a falling-out, according to the text's introduction?
(a) Ernest Hemingway.
(b) Gertrude Stein.
(c) James Baldwin.
(d) Langston Hughes.

15. As depicted in "The Bone of Contention," men living in Eatonville gather at Joe Clarke's store to socialize, though they use what errand as an excuse?
(a) Buying milk.
(b) Buying nightcrawlers.
(c) Waiting for the mail.
(d) Buying butter.

Short Answer Questions

1. What sort of the malady does the boy at the center of the story "A Bit of Harlem" have?

2. Which unpaid bill leads Mr. Bronner to fire Sam?

3. Which character in "Black Death" is identified as the local "conjure man" (101)?

4. Stella and Sam get married in which month of the year?

5. The jawbone of what type of animal figures into the storyline of "The Bone of Contention"?

(see the answer keys)

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