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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. In "Long Distance Runner," what argument does Didion cite when discussing how Richardson liked to be contrary?

2. In "Last Words," what writer does Didion say she could see Hemingway's influence on while teaching at Berkeley?

3. In "Telling Stories," what does Didion say she learned to do in writing "When Did Music Come This Way"?

4. Who is the star of the Tony Richardson film Didion cites at the start of "Long Distance Runner"?

5. Who wrote the script for "Hills Like White Elephants" discussed in "Long Distance Runner"?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Some Women," what does Didion say about what artists do and do not like to talk about with regard to their art?

2. What does Joan say she learned to do when writing "When Did Music Come This Way," and what did that story allow her to do after it was complete?

3. Who is Tony Richardson and how is he described in the two pictures Joan discusses at the start of "Long Distance Runner"?

4. What did Didion first think Run River was a story about, and what did it become?

5. What does Didion say about the way she thinks, or does not think, at the start of "Why I Write"?

6. What character in A Book of Common Prayer developed from an image of the Panama airport at 6 a.m. that stayed in Joan's mind?

7. In "Last Words," what did Carlos Baker say with regard to why he thought it important to publish Hemingway's letters?

8. What example does Didion cite as proof that Hemingway did not want his letters to be published after his death in "Last Words"?

9. In "Telling Stories," how does Joan describe what she learned about writing while working at Vogue?

10. What does Didion say of Richardson's often contrary behavior?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an analysis of literary irony in Let Me Tell You What I Mean. Use direct examples from the following stories to support your analysis: "Pretty Nancy," "Long Distance Runner," and "Everywoman.com."

Essay Topic 2

Based on her essays in Let Me Tell You What I Mean ,write an analysis of Joan Didion. Consider who she is as a writer, what you know of her backstory, as well as who and what she likes and dislikes. Use textual evidence to support your analysis.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing how Joan Didion's personal bias might influence her writing. Use the following stories as reference: "Everywoman.com," "Last Words," and "Long Distance Runner."

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