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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why was the woman reading the Bible during the period she writes about in her story?
(a) Because it was the High Holy Days.
(b) Because she wanted to use Biblical allusions in her writing.
(c) Because she wanted to know exactly what it said.
(d) Because she needed comfort during the hurricane.

2. What is it logical to infer about the church women who are wearing red?
(a) They are collecting the offering.
(b) They are ushers.
(c) They are worship leaders.
(d) They are the choir.

3. What specific Biblical story does the writer focus on?
(a) Jonah and the Great Fish.
(b) The Garden of Eden.
(c) Noah's Ark.
(d) The Trials of Job.

4. Besides reading the Bible, what else does the woman spend her time doing in the period of time her story is about?
(a) She shops for emergency supplies and fills her tub with water.
(b) She reads the Koran and the Talmud.
(c) She looks out the window and watches the news.
(d) She calls each of her family members and friends.

5. What does the woman think might be preventing her from committing to a center for her story?
(a) Hope.
(b) Curiosity.
(c) Fear.
(d) Laziness.

6. The man tells the woman that he has committed "blasphemy" (20). What has he done?
(a) Told a harmful lie about someone.
(b) Shown disrespect to God.
(c) Contemplated suicide.
(d) Cursed God's name.

7. What color is the light in the man's bedroom?
(a) Yellow.
(b) Purple.
(c) Blue.
(d) Grey.

8. Where is the woman's landlady from?
(a) Trinidad.
(b) Cuba.
(c) Jamaica.
(d) Barbados.

9. What does the landlady say the mayor gave her?
(a) An award.
(b) Flowers.
(c) A stove.
(d) Carpet.

10. Why are rams' horns being blown all around the city?
(a) It is Rosh Hashanah.
(b) It is Yom Kippur.
(c) It is Sukkot.
(d) It is Hanukkah.

11. What does the hurricane do to the city in the woman's story?
(a) Passes by without actually striking the city.
(b) Drops large hail that smashes windows in buildings and in cars.
(c) Produces winds that uproot trees and tear off several roofs.
(d) Causes flooding that disrupts transportation.

12. What detail in the description of the man indicates how ill he feels?
(a) The color of his face.
(b) The sounds he is making.
(c) The way his ribs protrude.
(d) The smell coming from his skin.

13. What technique is used in the sentence: "Outside her apartment, the weather was changing: the wind rose, the branches swayed on the young trees, and the leaves fluttered" (19)?
(a) Non sequitur.
(b) Parallelism.
(c) Juxtaposition.
(d) Analogy.

14. In the story's opening sentence, what is implied about the main character's writing?
(a) She is losing interest in her career.
(b) Her readers are gradually deserting her.
(c) More than one of her stories is uninteresting.
(d) She does not deserve the praise she has gotten.

15. What denomination is the last church that the woman visits?
(a) Episcopalian.
(b) Methodist.
(c) Congregationalist.
(d) Baptist.

Short Answer Questions

1. What technique is used in the phrase "the stink of burning hair, fur, and horn" (19)?

2. What does the sick man want when he calls the main character?

3. After completing her first draft of the story, what does the woman realize about it?

4. Who is the author of "The Center of the Story"?

5. What detail of the woman's train ride reinforces the motif of things that come close to happening but do not actually happen?

(see the answer keys)

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