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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 subjects does the narrator of "How to Make Love to A Physicist" assume the man she sees teaches based on his “face and baby dreads” (95)?

2. Who does Lyra not want to invite to her first solo art exhibit in "How to Make Love to A Physicist"?

3. What does Daughter tell her mother she wishes she would do if she really remembers her in “When Eddie Levert Comes”?

4. What does the narrator of of “Instructions for Married Christian Husbands” say will happen if the man she is writing to develops feelings for her?

5. What does Sadie tell Jamie about her underwater dream in the fantasy Jael has about her?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Daughter say to her brother Rico the first time he complains about his mother talking about Eddie Levert?

2. How does Kachelle react when Jael asked her if she had ever thought about doing “things with girls” (124)?

3. What conversation does Jael‘s grandmother overhear about Jael at the corner store?

4. What does Granny say about the teasing Jael experienced at school particularly from Twan who always called her jailbird?

5. What does the speaker in “Instructions for Married Christian Husbands” say under the “Health and Wellness“ section?

6. What is one of the reasons Daughter suspects her mother may feel a bond with Eddie Levert?

7. What does the narrator of “Instructions for Married Christian Husbands” say under the section “Therapist”?

8. What is Jael‘s grandmother‘s reaction to the first journal entry she reads in the short story “Jael”?

9. What does the narrator of “Instructions for Married Christian Husbands” say she will do if she ever develops feelings for him under the section “Feelings”?

10. What does Daughter say to her mother while washing her hair at the end of “When Eddie Levert Comes”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many of the characters are viewed as sinful in the eyes of the church for their sexual interests or behaviors. Write an essay analyzing the theme of oppression and the church in two of the stories from The Secret Lives of Church Ladies.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing Philyaw’s choice to write “Peach Cobbler” from the daughter, Olivia’s point of view. Discuss how this point-of-view impacts the reader’s experience. Using direct examples from the text, explain why this point-of-view is or is not an effective choice.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay about the sensory details used in “Snowfall.” Be sure to explain the deeper meaning and thematic significance of these details.

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