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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 happens when the Young Man hides in Goldman's closet?

2. Why does Evelyn call the old man Tateh?

3. What does Evelyn receive in her divorce settlement?

4. Why is the girl tied by a rope to the old man's wrists?

5. What plea does Shaw's mother want him to make in court but he flatly refuses?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Evelyn see when she goes with Tateh to a socialist meeting?

2. What does Younger Brother do for a political rally in Rye, New York?

3. What sight as they sail out of New York Harbor depresses Father?

4. What does the Franklin Novelty Company do with Tateh's books?

5. What idea does Tateh have that makes them money.

6. Why is Houdini thrown out of Bellevue Hospital?

7. Why does socialite Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish bring Houdini and circus freaks to her house?

8. What becomes the fashion among the rich in turn of the century America?

9. How does Evelyn lose The Girl?

10. Explain how Harry K. Shaw gets to see Harry Houdini.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write your personal review of RAGTIME and make a recommendation for other readers. Write this paper as though you are a book reviewer for a large newspaper or national magazine. Be honest about what you liked or did not like about the book. [That it was required reading in class does not count as a reason to dislike the book.] Be specific when giving your reasons by quoting passages from the novel.

Essay Topic 2

Look up information of minstrel shows which were popular in America from the late 1800s through the 1930s. Describe them and give your opinion about them as entertainment. Even Scott Joplin performed in minstrel shows during his lifetime. Al Jolson, a Jewish man, became famous blacking his face and performing in minstrels. It was of course a demeaning representation of black people as a whole and contributed to the stereotype of the race that went on into the movies until the late 1950s. Discuss how much you think such entertainments delayed the civil rights movement in America.

Essay Topic 3

Do some research and write a brief paper on J. Pierpont Morgan. Political cartoons of his time pictured Morgan as being bigger than Uncle Sam. In fact, he did bail out the U.S. economy at one time. There is even an undertone of racism in Morgan in the novel when he cables the D. A. to give Coalhouse his auto and hang him. From your research, explain how Doctorow's use of Morgan in the novel is believable.

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