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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 9 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Along what street do the narrator and Sonny travel?

2. Which of the following does the narrator note having thrown from rooftops?

3. What are the last words the narrator’s mother says to him in the story?

4. In what branch of the military had the narrator served?

5. Of which borough does the narrator think while talking with Sonny’s childhood acquaintance?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does the narrator note that Sonny and his father had not gotten along?

2. Why had the narrator not known he had an uncle?

3. Why does the narrator posit his students are full of rage?

4. For what is Sonny arrested?

5. What are the narrator’s earliest memories of Sonny?

6. What does the narrator note would happen on Sunday evenings with his parents when someone turned on a light?

7. Why does the narrator note being glad of Isabel’s presence when he brings Sonny home?

8. What outcome does Sonny’s old acquaintance foresee for him?

9. Why does the narrator note having taken up residence where he did?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Conversely, given demonstrated efforts toward censorship in a number of countries, what would likely prompt bans of “Sonny’s Blues”? By which groups? Why?

Essay Topic 2

What character is the protagonist of “Sonny’s Blues”? How does the short story support such an assertion?

Essay Topic 3

Sources attest to the presence of “Sonny’s Blues” on must-read lists. Assuming that such status reflects popularity, what accounts for the popularity of the short story? How does it do so?

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