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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. How was the 1955 production of Carmen Jones different than previous productions?

2. What was the name of the establishment where the Melodeers ate their meals while in Atlanta?

3. Baldwin believes that the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin should have been:

4. Why is the cleanliness of the Carmen Jones movie set necessary for white audiences?

5. What stereotypical trait do the immoral and evil characters share in the film Carmen Jones?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Baldwin describe the social climate that existed when Richard Wright was writing Native Son?

2. Why do you think Baldwin experiences a sense of melancholy after his father's death?

3. What roles does religion play in the life of the Negro?

4. What did the Melodeers do to displease Mrs. Price?

5. According to Baldwin, how do the Europeans react to the American Negro's presence in Paris?

6. Describe Baldwin's father.

7. Why does Baldwin think that there is nowhere on earth for the black man to call home?

8. Describe how Baldwin's Harlem compares to his parent's Harlem.

9. Why did ex-GIs question their identity while studying in Paris?

10. How are Ebony and Our World Magazines different?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Baldwin describes his relationship with his father in Notes of a Native Son. After his father's death, Baldwin feels a sense of melancholy that he never had a chance to bond with his father. Why do you think Baldwin feels this way? What regrets, if any, do you think Baldwin had at the end of his father's life? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 2

Isolation is a major theme throughout Baldwin's book Notes of a Native Son. What reasons do you think African Americans abroad had for choosing to isolate themselves from other African Americans abroad? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Escaping is a major theme throughout many of the essays in Baldwin's book. For instance Baldwin escapes to Switzerland to write his book and African American soldiers escape to Paris for education and French culture. How do you think writing this book served as an escape for Baldwin? Did he write to escape the perils of life or racial prejudice? Did he write to help other understand the escape of African Americans from America and American culture? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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