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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. In what town does Delia attend church at the time Sykes is keeping the rattlesnake?
(a) Woodbridge.
(b) Orlando.
(c) Apalachicola.
(d) Eatonville.

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

3. To what animal does Dave compare Bertha after she has left the store with Sykes?
(a) A giraffe.
(b) An alligator.
(c) A hyena.
(d) A hippo.

4. What do the men immediately do when Sykes and Bertha arrive at the store when they are about to cut into the watermelon?
(a) They offer the pair a slice of watermelon.
(b) They walk off down the road carrying the watermelon with them.
(c) They go inside the store.
(d) They put away the watermelon and the knives.

5. When Delia confronts Sykes at the dinner table about removing the snake, what two behaviors of his does she say she has put up with for many years?
(a) Hating her and beating her.
(b) Starving her and beating her.
(c) Starving her and yelling at her.
(d) Ignoring her and being unfaithful to her.

Short Answer Questions

1. 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?

2. How much coffee does Sykes ask Joe Clarke to sell him?

3. What does Old Man Anderson suggest that the men do to Sykes and Bertha in Lake Howell swamp?

4. What does Delia nearly do as a result of being pushed by Sykes when he is blocking the kitchen doorway?

5. What adjective does Walter use to describe what type of customers he and the other men are during the men's requests for watermelon?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Sykes mean when he tells Delia not to ask him for anything and comments on her attempt to "goin' roun' trying 'tuh be so damn asterperious"? (6)

2. Which elements of Bertha's character are disparaged by the group of men at Joe Clarke's store once she leaves with Sykes?

3. How does Delia react once Sykes both refuses to remove the rattlesnake and threatens to beat her?

4. In what way does Sykes accuse Delia of being insincere about her fear of snakes when he brings home the rattlesnake?

5. What causes a "determined silence" (4) to fall over the porch when the men are about to slice the watermelon?

6. How does the author demonstrate the village's viewpoint regarding Sykes's keeping of the rattlesnake?

7. What does Delia say is different about Bertha in comparison to other women with whom Sykes has had affairs?

8. What two differing reasons does Sykes give for why he was able to catch the six-foot rattlesnake in the first place?

9. How does Sykes use the occasion of bringing home the rattlesnake in order to once again attack Delia's physical appearance?

10. How do Delia's actions and feelings in regard to the rattlesnake change once she sees its fangs wrapped around the wire mesh of its box?

(see the answer keys)

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