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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What kind of men does the speaker love in "Cora"?
(a) The ones who treat her poorly.
(b) The ones who always cheat on her with her best friend.
(c) The ones who never seem to live long.
(d) The ones who can play a "sweet Blues song."

2. Where are people meeting to plan the parade in "Parade"?
(a) The Elks Club Lodge.
(b) The mall; they have meeting rooms there.
(c) Church.
(d) At the minister's house.

3. Why does Madam have a large phone bill in "Madam and the Phone Bill"?
(a) Because someone called her collect.
(b) Because the company made a mistake.
(c) Because she fell asleep while on the phone.
(d) Because the rates went up and she didn't know.

4. What is the speaker tired of in "One-Way Ticket"?
(a) Lynching.
(b) People who are afraid of him.
(c) Jim Crow laws.
(d) All of these answers are correct.

5. How much does the character's buddy earn a week in "Buddy"?
(a) Ten a week.
(b) Twenty a week.
(c) Twelve a week.
(d) Fifteen a week.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the speaker pick up and take away in "One-Way Ticket"?

2. What question does the number runner ask Madam in "Madam and the Number Writer"?

3. What would the speaker in "Young Gal's Blues" rather be dead than?

4. What is Madam's full name?

5. What in particular does the speaker need a dime for in "Down and Out"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why do some of the women in the "Lament Over Love" section claim to still participate in bad relationships with men?

2. What theme unites the poems in "Name in Uphill Letters"?

3. What comparison is made in "Me and the Mule"?

4. Why does the speaker in "Third Degree" confess to police?

5. How do the poems in "Life Is Fine" treat life's trials and tribulations?

6. How are men portrayed in the poems in "Lament Over Love"?

7. What problem does the U.S. Census worker have with Madam in "Madam and the Census Man"?

8. What does the stereotype of the poem "Uncle Tom" tap into?

9. What is the common tone of the pieces in "Life Is Fine"?

10. Which famous line of Langston Hughes is in "Harlem"?

(see the answer keys)

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