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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. To whom of the following is the novel dedicated?

2. To which of the following does Aggie liken Samuel?

3. Whom of the following is Ailey’s high school history teacher?

4. How old is Ailey when Geoffrey’s father dies?

5. Which college is Ailey’s cousin Malcolm expected to attend?

Short Essay Questions

1. For what reason does Belle recommend eating greens?

2. Why does Root delay his arrival after Pearl dies?

3. What does Ailey note attracted Belle to the house in which she raised her children?

4. What is the excuse Big Thom gives for enrolling Root at Routledge?

5. Summarize the story Helen tells Aggie about menstruation.

6. Why does Ailey note she lost her desire for school in high school?

7. For what reason do the women of Belle’s hometown not blame men for adultery?

8. Why does Root dislike homecoming at his college?

9. How does Ailey regard her first plane trip?

10. Why does Ailey dislike spending summers in the City?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Section divisions, their titles, and chapter numbering / division schema are all components of paratext. That is, they are not part of the text but are associated with it closely and affect its meaning. What significance, if any, accrues to the chapter-numbering scheme at work in The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois? If there is significance, how does that significance manifest? If there is not, what in the novel supports the paratextual divisions that are in place?

Essay Topic 2

Who is “the long-haired lady” Ailey remarks upon seeing throughout her life? How does the text indicate as much?

Essay Topic 3

Overall, what is the most important theme of The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois. What in the text indicates as much? How does it do so?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 551 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample