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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. What did thieves do to "somebody's trusted housemaid" (26) after the city riots were suppressed?

2. Where were the riots said to be in the tale the narrator tells herself?

3. What does someone tell the narrator she should write for an upcoming anthology?

4. What "most profound" place does the narrator say men may be deep under her home?

5. What adjective is used to describe the gardener in the narrator's tale?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the narrator realize is the cause of the creaking she hears in her home at the start of the story?

2. What were the man and woman unable to insure their house against, and why did the man tell his wife they need not worry about that?

3. What does the man have installed in their house to ease his wife's fears and what does the boy do with them?

4. Where does the story the narrator tells herself take palce and who is in the story?

5. What fears did the man and woman's trusted housemaid begin to have, and what did they do in response to her fears?

6. Describe the sign the man and woman received from the Neighborhood watch. How was it supposed to "prove the property owner was no racist" (25)?

7. Despite having the same fears of intruders as other people, what precautions does the narrator say she does not take in her home?

8. What precautions do the man and woman take against theft or natural disasters when they first move in to their home together?

9. At the start of "Once Upon a Time," what does the narrator say someone wrote and asked her to do, and how does she feel about this request?

10. After the riots outside the city subsided, what crimes took place in the suburbs?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Look at the structure of the story. How does the author use character and dialogue to drive the narrative?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay describing the imagery used in “Once Upon a Time.” Indicate examples of imagery in the text and identify possible meanings.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Gordimer’s focus on themes of fear and protection in "Once Upon a Time."

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