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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Sykes laughs at Delia for being scared of the bullwhip, what physical movement does he make?
(a) He slaps his leg.
(b) He stomps his foot.
(c) He wipes his face.
(d) He crosses his legs.

2. The narrator describes Delia's shoulders as thin and what?
(a) Sloped.
(b) Strong.
(c) Bent.
(d) Stooped.

3. What adjective does the narrator use to describe Delia's pose when she picks up the object after Sykes threatens to hit her?
(a) Defensive.
(b) Menacing.
(c) Murderous.
(d) Foreboding.

4. When the scene shifts to the porch at the corner store for the first time, what month is it?
(a) December.
(b) February.
(c) April.
(d) July.

5. What object does Delia credit with paying for the house she and Sykes live in?
(a) Her mother's diamond ring.
(b) Her blood.
(c) Her sweat.
(d) Her horse.

6. Where does Sykes say he has been when Delia asks him where he has been with her horse and buckboard?
(a) With Bertha.
(b) He does not say.
(c) At the corner store.
(d) At church.

7. When Delia goes into the yard to retrieve the washtub, what action does Sykes take inside the house?
(a) He kicks her sorted laundry back into one pile.
(b) He throws the sorted laundry into the backyard.
(c) He pours coffee over her sorted laundry.
(d) He hides her sorted laundry in the closet.

8. What word does the narrator use to describe Delia's thoughts about her garden?
(a) Serene.
(b) Lovely.
(c) Bountiful.
(d) Beautiful.

9. When Delia picks up an object and strikes a pose after being threatened by Sykes, what does the narrator state as the action that Sykes refrains from performing, though he usually would perform it right away in such a situation?
(a) Yelling at Delia.
(b) Calling the magistrate.
(c) Striking Delia.
(d) Leaving the house.

10. Elijah says that Sykes has beaten Delia enough to kill how many women?
(a) 3.
(b) 10.
(c) 20.
(d) 5.

11. What does Walter say he sees Sykes do every time he passes a woman?
(a) Grin.
(b) Laugh.
(c) Imagine.
(d) Stare.

12. On what day of the week does Delia collect and deliver clothes using her pony and buckboard?
(a) Saturday.
(b) Monday.
(c) Wednesday.
(d) Sunday.

13. When Joe Lindsay says that there ought to be a law about Sykes's behavior, he says that Sykes "ain't fit tuh carry guts to a" (3) what?
(a) A bear.
(b) A vulture.
(c) A hyena.
(d) A seagull.

14. What does Sykes tell Delia he will do if she argues with him about taking in white people's laundry?
(a) Kick her.
(b) Strangle her.
(c) Shove her.
(d) Punch her.

15. What kind of women does Sykes declare to Delia that he hates?
(a) Skinny.
(b) Lying.
(c) Mean.
(d) Sneaky.

Short Answer Questions

1. What substance does Delia demand that Sykes stop grinding into the clothes?

2. In addition to the adjective black, what other adjective does Delia use to describe Bertha the first time she brings her up to Sykes?

3. What object does Delia pick up immediately after Sykes threatens her in the kitchen?

4. When Sykes declares how tired he is of Delia and leaves the house, what does he do on his way out?

5. The narrator describes Sykes's choice of the laundry pile on which to step using which adjective?

(see the answer keys)

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