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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What adjective does Old Man Anderson use to describe his view of what kind of man Sykes had always been?
(a) Proud.
(b) Mean.
(c) Overbearing.
(d) Haughty.

2. When Delia says that Sykes can lie with Bertha as much as he wants, what condition does she put on her assent?
(a) That Sykes get rid of the snake.
(b) That Bertha stay away from her house.
(c) That Sykes leave her house.
(d) That Sykes fix the barn roof.

3. What two items does Sykes tell Joe Clarke he has come to buy?
(a) Eggs and maple syrup.
(b) Pork belly and coffee.
(c) Pecans and molasses.
(d) Coffee and bread.

4. What does Delia tell Sykes he has killed by bringing the snake to the house?
(a) Her peace.
(b) Her insides.
(c) Her contentment.
(d) Her spirit.

5. When Delia is described as trying to avoid meeting places in town, what does the narrator say she is trying to accomplish?
(a) She is trying not to waste time with conversation when she could be working.
(b) She is trying to cut off friendships with the townspeople.
(c) She is trying to be blind and deaf.
(d) She is trying to strengthen her resolve to move away from Eatonville.

6. What verb is used to indicate the manner in which Delia goes underneath Sykes's arm when he is blocking the doorway?
(a) Slinks.
(b) Stoops.
(c) Shrugs.
(d) Crouches.

7. Who is the one villager mentioned by name who comes to the house to see Sykes's snake?
(a) Joe Lindsay.
(b) Joe Clarke.
(c) Elijah.
(d) Walter.

8. What adjective does Sykes delightedly use to describe Bertha's shape?
(a) Meaty.
(b) Chubby.
(c) Statuesque.
(d) Portly.

9. When Sykes refuses to take the snake away and says that he does not have to do anything besides take a particular action, what action does he say he must do?
(a) Kneel.
(b) Scream.
(c) Die.
(d) Laugh.

10. Before Delia begs Sykes to kill the rattlesnake he has brought home, what does she ask him to do with it?
(a) Pick it up.
(b) Set it free.
(c) Find it some food.
(d) Take it away.

11. For how long has Bertha been living in Eatonville on the day Sykes takes her to the store?
(a) Three months.
(b) Two weeks.
(c) One week.
(d) Four months.

12. Who pays Bertha's rent in Eatonville?
(a) Sykes.
(b) Joe Clarke.
(c) Walter.
(d) Bertha's ex-husband.

13. How much chewing gum does Sykes buy for Bertha at the store?
(a) Ten sticks.
(b) Five gumballs.
(c) A block.
(d) A pound.

14. What does the narrator say streams down like a "million hot arrows" (5) during the time when Delia and Sykes are not speaking to one another?
(a) The rays of the sun.
(b) The tense moments.
(c) The heat.
(d) The raindrops.

15. What reason does Sykes provide for his conclusion that the snake would never bite Delia?
(a) Because snakes do not bite masculine women.
(b) Because the snake would not want to risk breaking his fangs on her bony legs.
(c) Because the snake knows it would be killed.
(d) Because the snake would recognize her as a fellow demon.

Short Answer Questions

1. What day does Sykes say he has almost forgotten it is when he is about to leave the store with Bertha?

2. What does Sykes say Delia looks like to him when he tells Delia he has hated her for years?

3. What two activities does the narrator say that Delia and Sykes now do in silence since their complete impasse?

4. What simile does the narrator use to describe the snake's fangs curving into the covering of its soap box?

5. When Delia sees the snake's fangs, she does not run away like usual, nor does she do what with her eyes as she has done in the past?

(see the answer keys)

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