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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 what voice and tense is Welcoming the Board of Directors written?

2. Where do they bury the player in Death of the Right Fielder?

3. Who becomes engaged to Freddie in An Insolvable Problem of Genetics?

4. The author of One of These Days hails from where?

5. Who is the author of Weather in San Francisco?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who is the central character in Love, Your Only Mother? What does she receive regularly in the mail?

2. Discuss and describe the imagery in the story Blackberries. How does this imagery support the narrative's themes?

3. Who are the characters in At the River? What are they catching for food in the story?

4. Who is the central character in On Hope? What does his monkey bring to him?

5. What is the older Borges doing in August 25, 1983? What is the reaction of the younger Borges?

6. How does the gypsy try getting rid of the stolen item in On Hope? How is he thwarted in his attempts?

7. Who is the narrator in An Insolvable Problem of Genetics? What information does the family learn from Freddie?

8. Describe the themes and political motif in One of These Days. What other story in the collection shares similar themes?

9. How is the narrative structured in the story Happy Endings? What are the first scenarios like?

10. Who is the central character in House Opposite? What decision does he make in the narrative?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the themes and perspectives presented in Girl and The Other Wife. What elements of feminism can be seen in the themes of these works? How is this reflected in other writings by the authors?

Essay Topic 2

Compare the works Welcoming the Board of Directors and The Boy. How is the narrative voice in the stories different? What differences exist in the stories' tones? How is the teacher in The Boy reflective of Oates feminist perspective?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the stories The Blue Jar and Gregory. How do each of the authors use imagery in a different way? How does each story encapsulate time?

(see the answer keys)

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