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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 suggestion does Bat make after Syl accuses Bat of deliberately taking him to an area where the hotels will refuse him?

2. When Pat first announces that she has no intention of sharing a hotel room with Syl, what does Bat say in response?

3. When Bat tells Syl that a hotel room in the first area they go to is likely to cost two guineas or more, what does the narrator comment about Bat's motives?

4. After Nobby gets rid of his dog, what does he tell his landlady happened to it?

5. When the narrator says that Trinidadians love a "fete," what is he saying they love?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Harry react when he learns what Jean does for a living?

2. What about the timing of the mens' plan to buy a house makes the narrator think they were never serious to begin with?

3. What details does the narrator give about the excursion crowd's clothing and the things they are carrying, and what do these details imply?

4. What does Poor do to disrupt the excursion, and why does he do it?

5. What irony does the narrator point out in the way men treat women?

6. What evidence is there that Gallows understands Bat's intentions during the search for the hotel?

7. What function do the historical details offered during the Hamdon Court excursion serve?

8. When the friends come to Bat's apartment to ask for their money back, what does the narrator mean when he says that Bat "shake the lists as if they was cheques" (60)?

9. Describe Bat's reaction to Matilda's suggestion about the excursion.

10. What details does the narrator give that demonstrate how eager people are to go on the excursion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that takes and defends a position on the following question: What does The Housing Lark's plot suggest about the "ownership" of land and countries? Think about how the characters' search for housing impacts them and what makes it so difficult for them to find secure housing in the first place. What is the perspective of the English landlords, and how much space in the novel is this perspective given? How did these landlords become landlords in the first place? Why does it matter that these characters are not just poor or nonwhite characters searching for housing but specifically immigrant characters looking for a home? What does Harry's plan to buy a house mean, at a deeper level? Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

What are the various functions of the West Indian vernacular language used in The Housing Lark? Why does it matter that this is the dialect used by the narrator? How does this dialect contribute to meaning and tone? Write an essay that takes and defends a position on these issues. Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

How is The Housing Lark itself potentially an example of using humor as a defense against pain? Consider how the characters use humor as a deflecting device and defense mechanism. Then, do some research into Sam Selvon's background and his other works. What evidence do you find that suggests whether or not Sam Selvon's writing of The Housing Lark as a comedy is similar to his characters' use of comedy? Support your ideas with evidence from the text, and cite all sources in MLA format.

(see the answer keys)

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