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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. When middle sister thinks about her discussion with a particular character in the bar, she tells the reader that to her surprise, the topic of the discussion had actually been what?

2. The character middle sister sees after the dogs eat the chips is afflicted with which malady or disability?

3. How many other people in the community had already been declared beyond-the-pales when middle sister suffers the same fate?

4. On how many previous occasions had ma handed over her purse to someone else?

5. What does middle sister do in Chapter 6 when a former couple sees each other for the first time in ages?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are middle sister's expectations when she tells longest friend the truth about the milkman?

2. Give an example of Burns's use of sarcastic humor within Chapter 5 and explain its connection to one of the novel's major themes.

3. What change occurs in middle sister's feelings for maybe-boyfriend after the milkman begins to stalk her?

4. How does longest friend's reaction to middle sister's confession surprise middle sister?

5. For what reason does the incident in the chip shop happen, according to middle sister?

6. What major revelation about the community's view of middle sister does longest friend reveal during their meeting?

7. What revelation does ma make about real milkman during one of her breaks from the hospital?

8. What act does middle sister see as the one that would symbolize her surrender to the milkman?

9. Describe an instance when Burns makes a point about how polarization often leads to exclusion.

10. What kind of murders are said to be "unfathomable" (237) within the confines of middle sister's community and why are they described in this way?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Burns use sensory details in order to strengthen the text’s messages? Discuss at least two passages that include the use of sensory details and pull quotes from these passages to support your claim.

Essay Topic 2

Would Burns’s novel Milkman be classified as a dystopian novel? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

How is the theme of injustice portrayed within Milkman? Examine Burns's treatment of and messages regarding injustice throughout the work.

(see the answer keys)

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