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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 does the author describe as her interdiction of her story in "Morphology of the Hit" (70)?

2. What is described in "Pain Tours (I)" as a disease one calls "the uniting of dust in the lungs" (81)?

3. Who designed and built Watts Towers?

4. What was stolen from the author when she was punched?

5. What kinds of movies does the author describe being popular on the buses to the highest city in the world in "Pain Tours (I)"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is El Alto described in "Pain Tours (I)"?

2. How is the narrative related in "The Empathy Exams"?

3. Why does the author say she made Dr. M a villain in her story in "The Empathy Exams"?

4. How did Dawn characterize the difference between doctors and nurses in "Devil's Bait"?

5. What statue is described on the mining tour in "Pain Tours (I)"?

6. How is the road from Tijuana to Mexicali described in "La Frontera"?

7. Who wrote Morphology of the Folktale? What is it about?

8. Where does the author describe living in "Morphology of the Hit"? What was she doing there?

9. What is the basic case summary for Stephanie Phillips in "The Empathy Exams"?

10. What does the author describe as her experience with a parasite under the skin in "Devil's Bait"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the narrative style in the essays contained in The Empathy Exams. From what perspective are the narratives related? Is the author's style more journalistic or more memoir? What are the effects of this narrative style on the reader?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss three examples of metaphor in The Empathy Exams. What things/concepts are being compared? How do you relate to the metaphor? What effect does this metaphor have on the reader?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss symbolism as explored in "Pain Tours (II)." What is represented by Frida Kahlo's corsets? What does the Bolivian supermarket symbolize in the second section of the essay, "Servicoi Supercompleto"? What do the writings of James Agee symbolize in the last section of the essay?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 740 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample