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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 was Bombeck's reaction to her daughter's announcement about the bill in Congress during "Have a Good Day"?

2. What is the name of the little girl about whom Bombeck speaks in "Mother Mystique"?

3. What would drive a mother crazy if the child were to meet that parent at the door with this?

4. What did most people tell Lorraine Suggs about her situation with her family?

5. In what event must Bombeck's family use the manual she wrote up in "Is There Life After Mine?"

Short Essay Questions

1. According to Bombeck, what was the result of the coffee boycott in 1942?

2. In "Who Killed Apple Pie?", what does Bombeck say started to happen to housewives and what was the result?

3. Describe some of the things that children must be aware of when staying home alone in "Primer for Imaginative Children."

4. What question did Bombeck discuss in "Mother Mystique" and what was her answer?

5. What annoyances does Bombeck describe in "If You Thought the Wedding Was Bad?"

6. What did Bombeck claim about remembering children's names in "Haven't I Always Loved Whatshisname Best?"

7. With what issue did Bombeck struggle in "The Varicose Open" and why?

8. Who is Lorraine Suggs?

9. What were some of the considerations Bombeck claimed children should think about before calling a parent at work?

10. What were some of the basic tasks that Bombeck's family were unable to perform in "Is There Life After Mine?"

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Bombeck's ability to transcend the stereotypes of the housewife and her methods of celebrating the position. It would be helpful to compare her earlier essays to her later essays. Develop a clear thesis statement and cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

Compose an essay discussing Bombeck's reliance on her humor to understand and comfort herself through different periods in her life. Focus on how it is related to her self-characterization as a perpetually confused naif, her children growing up, and her relationship to her readers. Cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

How did Bombeck's writing blend together different genres? Discuss this question by analyzing the different genres in which she delves for her writing. Be sure to use examples from essays spanning through several years of her career while being guided by a strong thesis statement.

(see the answer keys)

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