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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. Once, on his way to the train accompanied by a chauffeur and a secretary, who did Hughes meet at the station?

2. In his anecdote about the strawberry greens at dinner, what had the other diners done with the green stems?

3. Why did Hughes say he loved his patron?

4. What were some of the stops Hughes's ship made while on its route to and from Havana?

5. Where did Hughes attend college at the height of the Negro Renaissance?

Short Essay Questions

1. What were some of the places in Italy Hughes saw aboard the ship headed for New York? What happened to him in Valencia?

2. What club did white people come into Harlem to drink and listen to music? Why did Hughes not go to this club? How did most Harlem blacks feel about this club?

3. What was the "Messenger"? Who ran it? Why was the editor and the "Messenger" important to Hughes?

4. How did Hughes conclude his story of the racial survey at Lincoln? What changes did he witness at the school and in how many years?

5. Where did Hughes attend college during the 1920s? When was the college founded and by whom? Where is the college located?

6. What was hazing at Lincoln University? What kinds of things did hazing involve? What was Hughes's initiation ritual for his fraternity?

7. What happened to Hughes on his was back to France that changed his travel plans?

8. What survey did Hughes conduct at his college during his senior year? Why was this issue important to Hughes?

9. What did Florence do after the brawl at the Grand Duc? How did this affect the club and what did the owner finally do?

10. What poem did Hughes submit in Witter Bynner's Intercollegiate Undergraduate Poetry Contest? How did the poem fare?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

There were two singers at the Grand Duc while Hughes worked there: Florence Embry Jones and Bricktop Ada Smith. Both were excellent jazz singers and two very different women. Compare the two singers, what they offered the Grand Duc, and how they affected Hughes while he worked there.

Essay Topic 2

Hughes titled one of the chapters in his autobiography "Distinguished Visitor." This visitor brought with him the beginnings of major fame for Hughes. Discuss the visitor and what he had to offer Hughes. Who did he introduce Hughes to that influenced his career? Why was this visitor important throughout Hughes's career?

Essay Topic 3

When Hughes boarded the S.S. Malone, he brought a box with him on the ship. One night shortly after the ship embarked on its journey to Africa, Hughes dumped the contents of his box into the ocean. This was an important event in Hughes' life. What was in the box that was thrown overboard, and why did Hughes toss everything into the ocean? What did he hope to change in his life by this symbolic act?

(see the answer keys)

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