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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. Claudia says of the girls who come from places like Mobile and Aiken that they “learn how to do the white man's work with” what, in Part III?

2. What were the baby twin siblings of Pauline Williams called, according to the narrator in Part IV?

3. When describing the girls who come from places like Mobile and Aiken, Claudia says in Part III that they go to what kind of colleges?

4. Who is the gym teacher that Maureen describes as bow-legged in Part III?

5. Where did Cholly Breedlove first find work when he came to Lorain, Ohio?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Mrs. Breedlove respond when she finds the spilled cobbler in “Spring”?

2. What happens when Frieda, Claudia, and Maureen Peal encounter some schoolboys taunting Pecola in “Winter”?

3. What does Mr. Henry tell Claudia and Frieda about his unexpected guests in Part III? What do the girls do?

4. What are Claudia and Frieda’s feelings about Maureen Peal when she moves to Lorain in “Winter”?

5. Why does Frieda tell Claudia has happened with Mr. Henry in the beginning of Part IV?

6. What exchange takes place between Maginot Line and Claudia and Frieda in “Spring”?

7. How does the narrator distinguish the difference between “colored girls” and “black girls” in “See the Cat…”?

8. How is Maureen Peal described when she is first introduced in “Winter”?

9. “See the Cat…” begins with a discussion of what “types of girls”? Where are these individuals from?

10. What misunderstanding at the ice cream parlor contributes to the growing tension between Claudia and Maureen in “Winter”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the setting of the novel and examine the different aspects of this time and place in history. What was the political atmosphere in America like in 1941? When did the U.S. enter WWII? How were race relations characterized at this time? How did race relations differ in the north and south in the U.S.?

Essay Topic 2

What adjectives and descriptive words are used in “See the Cat…” to describe the “types of girls” who come to Lorain from places like Mobile, Marietta, etc.? How do these girls differ from the “black girls” that Claudia and Frieda consider themselves? Do you think that the narrator views the girls as better than them, or simply as perceived as better?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the character of Claudia MacTeer as the narrator of much of the novel. How old is Claudia in the opening of the narrative? Do you like this character? Why or why not? How does Claudia change in the course of the story?

(see the answer keys)

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