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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. Which of the following statements describes Richard's mother?

2. At the dinner Richard attends, how many other single people are seated at his table?

3. Which of the following statements does not describe how the woman in "Can I Get a Witness?" feels about the people who died on September 11th?

4. What kind of poetry does Harlan Atwater write in "The Search Engine"?

5. What kind of work does the man in "Can I Get a Witness?" do?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain why Corliss identifies so strongly with Harlan Atwater.

2. What does the opening scene of "The Search Engine" in which Corliss watches the young couple in the student union cafe foreshadow?

3. Before he encounters Bill and the lawyer's basketball league, does Richard's career path seem to be leading him to his goal of the Senate and the White House?

4. Do you think the woman in "Can I Get a Witness" is thinking clearly after the bombing, or do you think her head injury affects her speech and behavior?

5. What does Richard think most Native American politicians are like?

6. What is the significance of Harlan Atwater not giving his real name to Corliss?

7. What do Corliss's apartment and the way it is furnished indicate about Corliss?

8. Discuss the touches of humor in "Can I Get a Witness?"

9. Who is the antagonist in "Lawyer's League" and what helps identify that character as the villain/villainess?

10. Are there any parallels between the bombing of the Good Food Restaurant in "Can I Get a Witness" and the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Sherman Alexie uses foreshadowing throughout Ten Little Indians. Give at least three examples of foreshadowing from the short stories in this collection and discuss how foreshadowing is used in each example to indicate events to come later in the story.

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast three of the following African American characters from Ten Little Indians: William from "Lawyer's League," Fekadu from "Flight Patterns," and Preacher, Russell, or the point guard from "What Ever Happened to Frank Snake Church?" Do the African-American characters treat the Native American characters differently than white characters do? Do the Native American characters feel differently about the African-American characters than they do about the white characters? Cite examples from the text to support your conclusions.

Essay Topic 3

"The Life and Times of Estelle Walks Above" contains many numbered lists, notices of historical revision, and questions and answers marked Q and A. What do you think this unusual method of structure indicates about the character of the male narrator and what do you think Sherman Alexie is trying to convey in this unique format? Cite examples from the text to support your conclusions.

(see the answer keys)

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