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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 can be inferred about Hampstead and Mayfair from Gallows's discussion with the estate agent?
2. On what day of the week does the story open?
3. Why does Gallows say that he feels sorry for Harry?
4. What is the name of the song that Harry wrote himself?
5. What nation has the protagonist emigrated from?
Short Essay Questions
1. Other than the money, what do the things that Battersby imagines the genie bringing him all have in common with one another, and what does this demonstrate about Battersby himself?
2. Which of Bat's friends takes photographs, and what is comical about how he does it?
3. How does the sentence "I mean, you think it have a lot of obeah and black magic in the West Indies, but if you listen to some of these Nordics" illustrate the unusual aspects of this book's narrative voice?
4. Why does the narrator say that weather forecasters should be "diplomats" (4)?
5. What is ironic about the way Syl's West Indian origins were exposed to his landlord?
6. When the novel opens, what is Battersby doing?
7. Describe Matilda's conflicting thoughts about Jean's being a sex worker.
8. What is ironic about the story of Fitz's marriage?
9. How did Gallows come to meet Battersby and his friends?
10. What does Battersby mean when he tells Alfonso that the weather forecaster is talking about "depression and high pressure" and that these are "things the boys know about" (4)?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
You have already examined the internalized racism that characterizes several people in The Housing Lark. But does the narrator share this internalized racism? Write an essay that takes and defends a clear position on this question. Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.
Essay Topic 2
The Housing Lark is a novel that conveys much about the importance of community--Selvon uses characters, plot details, narrative voice, and other tools to reinforce his meaning. How does he also use the structure of storytelling itself to reinforce the novel's messages about community? What structures might he have chosen rather than his "ballad" format? How does this pattern of digression into individuals' stories and return to the central plot of the housing plan transmit an important message about community? Write an essay that analyzes how the novel's structure supports its concerns with the importance of community. Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.
Essay Topic 3
Write an essay explicating the possible purposes of the parallels between techniques used in The Housing Lark and in calypso music. Show what these parallels are, providing evidence for the similarities you identify. Then, explain how these parallels support meaning--for instance, by creating atmosphere and conveying ideas. Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.
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This section contains 1,115 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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