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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What happened on the same day that Baldwin's father died?

2. What is the name of the first church that Baldwin can remember attending with his family as a child?

3. What reason does Baldwin give for not believing that ex-GIs traveled to Paris to study?

4. What did Baldwin drink before his father's funeral?

5. What difference does Baldwin suggest exists between soldiers that studied in Paris and those that did not?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In the chapter Many Thousands Gone, Baldwin describes what it means to be a "Native Son" for black men. In a later essay, Notes of a Native Son, Baldwin describes his life as a "Native Son." How does Baldwin's description compare to his personal account? In what ways are they similar? In what ways are they different? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 2

Based on Baldwin's essays Carmen Jones: The Dark is Light Enough and The Harlem Ghetto, what role did media (i.e. newspapers, magazines, and film) have on the life of the Negro in the 1940s and 1950s? Please use examples from the book to support your answer.

Essay Topic 3

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.

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This section contains 338 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample