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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. What material is the boy's father's clothes made from?

2. What is the name of Jack's husband?

3. What does Sam do after school?

4. When does James' stepfather visit them?

5. In what city of Virginia does Hunter's cousin live?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe James' brother, Dennis.

2. Why is music important to James?

3. Describe the character of Daddy.

4. What is the state of black people's lives in the 1930s?

5. How does Sam's leaving home affect Ruth?

6. How does Ruth react to Hunter Jordan's death?

7. Why did James think his mother was strange?

8. How does Ruth's life take a turn for the worse when the family moves to Virginia?

9. Describe Ruth's father's work.

10. How does Ruth's family react to her pregnancy?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss differences between the novel and autobiography formats. What are the main elements of a novel? What are the main elements of an autobiography? What can novelists express that an autobiographer cannot? How can autobiographies keep to the facts while still maintaining a level of entertainment?

Essay Topic 2

How does Ruth's Jewish upbringing influence her approach to life? How does Ruth's approach change when she converts to Christianity? In what way does James suggest his mother struggled with her conversion to Christianity?

Essay Topic 3

Examine what the following generations experienced during their time in America:

1) Ruth's grandparents

2) Ruth's parents

3) Ruth and her siblings

4) James and his siblings

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This section contains 686 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample