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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice," what does Joan say her friend was disappointed about in her 4-year-old's reference letters?
(a) Nobody mentioned her songwriting skills.
(b) Nobody mentioned she was potty-trained.
(c) Nobody mentioned how much money her parents made.
(d) Nobody mentioned her interest in art.

2. What grade does Joan get on the essay she wrote for her friend in "On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice"?
(a) B-.
(b) A.
(c) B+.
(d) C+.

3. What is one of the newspapers that the author lists as one of the few that do not make her feel as though "the oxygen has been cut off from [her] brain tissue" (20)?
(a) The EastSide Reporter.
(b) The San Francisco Chronicle.
(c) The Wall Street Journal.
(d) The New York Times.

4. In "On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice," Joan dates a man who aspires to be what?
(a) An artist.
(b) A pro-wrestler.
(c) A politician.
(d) A pro-golfer.

5. In what city in California does the meeting in "Getting Serenity" take place?
(a) Sacramento.
(b) Gardena.
(c) Hollywood.
(d) San Diego.

6. How old is Nancy's daughter Patti in "Pretty Nancy"?
(a) 19.
(b) 8.
(c) 15.
(d) 12.

7. Rather than being adversaries, Didion says that writers for mainstream newspapers are now what?
(a) Ignored.
(b) Bribed.
(c) Confidants.
(d) Blacklisted.

8. Who is signed as the Director of Admissions on the rejection letter Joan Didion discusses in "On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice"?
(a) Redford K. Barboza.
(b) Rex P. Smith.
(c) Robert J. Snider.
(d) Rixford K. Snyder.

9. In "A Trip to Xanadu," who does Didion say she took to tour San Simeon after it became a state monument?
(a) Her daughter.
(b) Her niece.
(c) Her mother.
(d) Her husband.

10. What does Didion say she has never read in an underground paper in "Alicia and the Underground Press"?
(a) She says she has never read anything useless.
(b) She says she has never read anything political.
(c) She says she has never read anything she needs to know.
(d) She says she has never read anything well written.

11. Though Didion agrees that writing in underground newspapers is often "amateurish and badly written," she disagrees with what sentiment?
(a) That they are boring.
(b) That they are interesting.
(c) That they are biased.
(d) That they are unnecessary.

12. In "Alicia and the Underground Press," what does Didion feel a reader can be sure of when the writer allows their bias to exist?
(a) You can be sure the writer is unprofessional.
(b) You can be sure the writer will tell you what s/he truly thinks.
(c) You can be sure the writer will be dishonest.
(d) You can be sure the writer's goal is to change your mind.

13. Where is Alicia from "Alicia and the Underground Press" from?
(a) Anchorage.
(b) Ann Arbor.
(c) Detroit.
(d) Minneapolis.

14. Who is Nancy's husband in "Pretty Nancy"?
(a) Richard Nixon.
(b) Frank Sinatra.
(c) Ronald Reagan.
(d) George Bush.

15. What does Didion note that meeting attendees have an unusual knack for in "Getting Serenity"?
(a) Smoking constantly.
(b) Making cake.
(c) Finishing each other's sentences.
(d) Dates and numbers.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Didion feel meetings such as the one she attended in "Getting Serenity" reinforce in people?

2. What is the subject of the essay Joan's friend asked her to write for him in "On Being Unchosen by the College of One's Choice"?

3. What is the full name of the man Joan is speaking with at the start of "Fathers, Sons, Screaming Eagles"?

4. Where does Skip tell Joan he was stationed while in the 101st Airborne in "Fathers, Sons, Screaming Eagles"?

5. Why does Walter Davis feel his perspective on war has changed in "Fathers, Sons, Screaming Eagles"?

(see the answer keys)

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