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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. In "Manhattan Is a Lenape Word," what is the literal meaning of the figurative lines, "an American drone finds then loves/ a body--the radiant nectar it seeks" (15)?

2. In "Skin-Light," what is the most likely antecedent of "it" in the line "My whole life I have obeyed it" (21)?

3. In "Asterion's Lament," to what is the beloved's body compared besides water?

4. In "From the Desire Field," how does "soy una sonámbula" function as an allusion?

5. In the opening of "Skin-Light," to what creature does the speaker compare herself?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain the central conceit in the poem "Catching Copper."

2. In "Run'n'Gun," what impresses the speaker about Clyde's basketball playing?

3. In "Wolf OR-7," what metaphor is employed in the section of the poem where the speaker claims, "Some things cannot be charted" (32)?

4. In "Like Church," what is the literal claim about the speaker's window and what is its figurative significance?

5. In "Manhattan Is a Lenape Word," what dark joke does the speaker make about reparations?

6. Explain the conceit introduced by the line, "I know another name for holy is water" in "Asterion's Lament" (27).

7. What is a literal summary of the action of "Blood-Light"?

8. What does the speaker mean in "They Don't Love You Like I Love You" when she says that she can see through maps?

9. In "The Mustangs," how are mustangs used symbolically?

10. What is the setting of "Manhattan Is a Lenape Word"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that analyzes the "wounds" motif in Postcolonial Love Poem. How do wounds function at both a literal and a symbolic level, and what positive function do poems in this collection seem to suggest wounds might serve? Be sure to support your analysis with evidence from at least five poems in the collection.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay that analyzes Diaz's use of both high- and low-cultural references in Postcolonial Love Song. Use textual evidence from at least five separate poems as support for your claims.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim regarding how the languages used in Postcolonial Love Poem support one of the book's key themes. Consider why English is the primary language of the poems and explain when and why non-English words are used. Use biographical research to find out what language(s) Diaz speaks, and consider this information in your argument. Use textual support for your claims, at least some of it quoted. Cite all sources in MLA format.

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