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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through "Some Women," "The Long Distance Runner," "Last Words" Part I.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is English 106A, the course Didion discusses in "Telling Stories"?
(a) An American literature class.
(b) A writer's workshop.
(c) A poetry workshop.
(d) A British Lit class.

2. In "Long Distance Runner," what word does Didion say Richardson often used when describing work?
(a) Serene.
(b) Impossible.
(c) Magic.
(d) Holy.

3. What does Nancy tell Joan she does not believe in being at the end of "Pretty Nancy"?
(a) A helicopter parent.
(b) A meek housewife.
(c) An absentee mother.
(d) A busybody.

4. In "Why I Write," what does Didion say she "plays by ear" (44)?
(a) Guitar.
(b) Saxophone.
(c) Grammar.
(d) Piano.

5. Who does Didion say is the only woman Mapplethorpe photographed who came across as being "entirely in charge of herself" (62)?
(a) Grace Jones.
(b) Joan Didion.
(c) Patti Smith.
(d) Yoko Ono.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Alicia and the Underground Press," what does Didion feel the claim to have no bias in reporting leads to in writing?

2. In "Some Women," Didion says that Mapplethorpe's photograph always exhibit a tension between what?

3. In "Telling Stories," how many stories does Didion say she completed for English 106A?

4. At the start of "Why I Write," Didion says that "writing is the act of saying" (42) what?

5. Which friend of Hemingway and his wife does Didion mention at the start of "Last Words"?

(see the answer key)

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