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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. Where are young Bobby and his Mama living when Henry Upshaw comes into their lives?

2. After Pepper gets Blood sent to jail on false charges, Blood takes advantage of a different kind of education. What does Blood learn in jail?

3. Why doesn't Chris want to talk to Blood?

4. Memories of whom begin to haunt Blood as he physically abuses Runt for the first time?

5. Before marrying a rich man, what was Pepper doing?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Runt's failure to return after the wire beating prompt Blood to think about calling Mama in Chapter 11?

2. In spite of having worked as a pimp for less than a full day in Chicago, Blood nevertheless provides Runt with a full set of "rules for whoring" in the neighborhood. Why does he do this and where would he have gotten these rules?

3. Like many of the chapters, the title of Chapter 6, "Drilling for Oil" may have multiple meanings. What are two possible interpretations of the "Oil" that Slim is drilling for?

4. Who are the first pimps and prostitutes in young Bobby's life and how is his encounter with them a generally positive experience?

5. How does the incident with Melody provide a metaphor for Blood's relationship with and attitude towards the white world?

6. How does the Chapter 9 title "Butterfly" refer to Chris?

7. How does Pretty Preston reveal his true colors in Chapter 6?

8. Apart from a beating, what does Sweet Jones provide for Blood during their first meeting?

9. Bobby accepts the invitation to attend Tuskegee University initially and only leaves when kicked out for bad behavior. How is Bobby's decision to attend college indicative of his frame of mind at this age?

10. How does it speak to Blood's salesmanship that he is able to score Runt as his own working girl after such a short period of time?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and comment on the irony in the fact that when Slim is released from Leavenworth, he has lost everything and everyone in his life except Mama, the person who, in his mind, drove him into the life he now leads.

Essay Topic 2

Prostitution is described as an almost wholly negative experience in the book "Pimp: The Story of My Life." Certainly those that worked for Slim didn't enjoy life all that often. However, there are many prostitutes (and non-prostitutes) who defend their line of work and demand decriminalization of the sex-trade (particularly to give them the legal status to avoid falling victim to their own pimps). Research the various arguments for and against legalizing prostitution and develop your own arguments for or against it.

Essay Topic 3

In the beginning of the book the author has Runt and only Runt to work for him. Gradually he acquires Ophelia and Chris, both of whom are described in some detail, are given names and have extensive interaction with Slim. By the end of the book, Slim routinely has 5 to 6 girls working for him at one time, sometimes 5 or 6 in multiple locations, and has high "turn-over." How do Slim's "girl-handling" techniques evolve through his pimping career and how does this progression become clear in the book? How does his business management style evolve as he ages? How does his environment affect his business (for example: the high cop to prostitute ratio in Cleveland)?

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