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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 6: Part II--God’s Language, including the essays “James Baldwin Eulogy” through “The Writer Before the Page”.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Black Matter(s)," what does Morrison say she means by "American Africanism"?
(a) A Black literary movement that centers Africanness.
(b) The historic systemic oppression of Black Americans.
(c) A white-American construct that defines "American" against a fabrication of Blackness.
(d) A claim for expansion of the literary canon to incorporate Black writers.

2. In "Unspeakable Things Unspoken," Morrison compares the restriction of the canon by traditional Western standards to what?
(a) A corset.
(b) A glass house.
(c) A jail cell.
(d) A lobotomy.

3. In "Unspeakable Things Unspoken," Morrison introduces Rogin's commentary on Moby Dick for what purpose?
(a) So that she can rebut Rogin's reading of Moby Dick.
(b) As part of her explication of the timeline of Western literature.
(c) To highlight the importance of Black scholarship.
(d) As an example of how a canonical piece can be enriched by reading for the Black presence.

4. The art show Morrison discusses in "Harlem on My Mind" had a catalog with a forward written by whom?
(a) Romare Bearden.
(b) Toni Morrison.
(c) A high-school student.
(d) The city parks commissioner.

5. In "Gertrude Stein and the Difference She Makes," Morrison says that she was told that the two responses to chaos are what?
(a) Imagination and reshaping.
(b) Naming and violence.
(c) Despair and hope.
(d) Critique and acceptance.

Short Answer Questions

1. Morrison's discussion of Huckleberry Finn in "Black Matter(s)" is intended as an illustration of what?

2. What is one of the consequences that Morrison blames on minstrelsy?

3. In "Unspeakable Things Unspoken," Morrison comments that race was once used to exclude Blacks, but now that they want their race represented, they are told it does not exist. What function does this detail perform?

4. In "Race Matters," Morrison says that she refuses to write in what voice?

5. In "Tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.," what does Morrison say she wonders about MLK?

(see the answer key)

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