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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. In Chapter Eight: The Republic, what does Deborah say Simone had refused to do with Algren?

2. In Chapter Nine: Night Wandering, who does Deborah say her mother married?

3. In Chapter Eleven: Footsteps in the House, what does Deborah say she remembered?

4. In Chapter Seven: The Black and Blueish Darkness, what does Deborah say is her mother's background?

5. In Chapter Ten: X is Where I Am, what does Deborah say Clara offered her?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter Ten: X is Where I Am, what does Deborah say Clara thought of Deborah's life? What does Deborah say she thought of this?

2. In Chapter Seven: The Black and Bluish Darkness, what does Deborah say she had for dinner? What happened with dinner?

3. In Chapter Seven: The Black and Bluish Darkness, what does Deborah say her new life was about? Why does she say this?

4. In Chapter Nine: Night Wandering, what does Deborah say happened when she read her book out loud at a festival in Berlin?

5. In Chapter Eight: The Republic, how does Deborah say she compared herself to Simone de Beauvoir? How are their lives similar and different?

6. In Chapter Ten: X is Where I Am, what does Deborah say she told Clara about dating again? How does she say Clara responded?

7. In Chapter Eight: The Republic, who does Deborah say she met? What did Deborah advise?

8. In Chapter Eleven: Footsteps in the House, where does Deborah say she went and why? What does she say this reminded her of?

9. In Chapter Eight: The Republic, what does Deborah say Simone de Beauvoir fought against so strongly? Who did she refuse in this quest?

10. In Chapter Ten: X is Where I Am, who does Deborah say took to driving her around the city and why? Who also rode with them?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The beginning of the autobiography quotes, "You're always more unreal to yourself than other people are." Marguerite Duras, Practicalities 1990.

This quote is returned to by the narrator several times. Find three examples and discuss how they connect with the author's idea of herself at different times in her life. How does her writing self relate to the idea of being real or unreal?

Essay Topic 2

Naming and its importance, is a major topic as Deborah becomes irritated that her male colleagues only refer to their spouses as "wife." As she says, "If we don't have names, who are we?" (8).

Apply this idea to how Deborah writes the autobiography. Who is named and who is unnamed in the autobiography? Which of the "characters" are male and female who are named and unnamed? Consider this about the naming and unnaming of wives for Deborah's male friends. What are considerations of naming someone, and how does Deborah use this in her autobiography account? Also consider how naming is a kind of seeing, and not naming is a kind of unseeing.

Essay Topic 3

In Chapter Four, Deborah says:

"I had energy because I had no choice but to have energy. I had to write to support my children and I had to do all the heavy lifting. Freedom is never free. Anyone who has struggled to be free knows how much it costs" (17).

What is the cost of freedom according to the autobiography? And how does Deborah represent both her struggle and cost for freedom alongside others struggle and cost throughout the autobiography? Relate your reflection and inquiry to the title of the autobiography. What is the cost of living?

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