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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 of the week does a Jewish tailor pass our free cigars on page 65?

2. On page 87, where was the party Big City says he attended?

3. Who persuades a shopkeeper on page 67 to give credit?

4. On page 60, how many pounds of potato has Tanty brought back?

5. Who is in a car that stops and invites Moses home for a cup of coffee on page 90?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where do Tolroy and his family live, and what is the area like?

2. How difficult was it to get staples from Jamaica before the mass immigration of Jamaicans?

3. What is Big City's background and how did he get his name?

4. What is available at a grocery at the bottom of Harrow Road?

5. Who is Five Past Twelve?

6. Why does a girl say that a man threw her out of his car on page 93?

7. Why does Tanty go to Ma's workplace, and how does Tanty get to and from Lyons Corner House?

8. How does Tanty get the grocer to give her credit?

9. What is it like when Tanty shops at the grocery?

10. On page 64, how do some old fellows beg for money?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What a reader knows about events and characters is determined by the point of view in a book. What is the point of view in the book? How does the point of view influence what readers know about events and character? How does it help readers connect with and understand characters?

Essay Topic 2

Galahad loses his job. He is often hungry, and he decides to catch a pigeon and eat it. What is the woman wearing who denigrates Galahad for killing a pigeon? Is the woman being hypocritical?

Essay Topic 3

Idioms are words that have a figurative, rather than a literal meaning. How does Selvon use idioms in the book? Why are the idioms sometimes difficult to understand? Why do idioms often require research to understand their meaning? Why is it particularly difficult to understand the idioms that are specific to West Indian language and culture?

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This section contains 849 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample