View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What can be seen as a metaphoric representation of the essentially empty, idealized image of Lincoln inhabited and clung to by the Foundling Father and shot by the would-be assassins in The American Play?

2. What word refers to an infant or small child found abandoned; a child without a known parent or guardian?

3. By what title does the Foundling Father refer to the impersonator of Abraham Lincoln in The America Play?

4. Madame Odelia Pandahr speaks in the manner of what in scene "B" of "Devotees in the Garden of Love"?

5. In "Panel I: Thou Holy Ghost" of "The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World," Black Woman recalls how much has changed since when?

Short Essay Questions

1. What figures and characters are introduced by the Foundling Father in The America Play, "Act One: Lincoln Act"?

2. What does the play on words of "Foundling Father" imply in The America Play?

3. What conversation do Black Man and Black Woman share in "Panel I: Thou Holy Ghost" of "The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World"?

4. How are linear and stream-of-consciousness narratives juxtaposed in "Pickling"?

5. What story does Brazil relate to the audience in The America Play, "A - Big Bang"?

6. Whose death is announced in "Panel II: First Chorus" of "The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World"?

7. How does the objective of the Foundling Father relate to other protagonists in the collection?

8. How does Parks intertwine linear narrative and metaphor in The America Play?

9. What allusion is implied in the arrival of the winner's head, presented to George on a platter in "Devotees in the Garden of Love"?

10. How does the term "pickling" apply to the play "Pickling"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the themes, imagery, and symbolism in "The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World." How does the symbolism reflect the theme of identity in the play?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the origins, history, and stylistic elements of radio dramas and analyze the character of Miss Miss in "Pickling." How many characters comprise the cast?

Essay Topic 3

Identify and analyze the central characters, themes, symbols and structural elements in "Open House." What is the author's overall statement in Aretha's metaphor?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,008 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample