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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Morrison's "Black Matter(s)," what is a key factor in national identity?
(a) Immigration.
(b) Politics.
(c) Religion.
(d) Literature.

2. "Noblesse oblige" is a philosophy that urged the nobility to do what?
(a) Accumulate as much land as possible.
(b) Share their wealth.
(c) Seize power from the church.
(d) Prevent strangers from entering their lands.

3. In "Cinderella's Stepsisters," Morrison's central claim is that women should not do what?
(a) Oppress other women.
(b) Risk the gains women have made by trying to move forward too quickly.
(c) Participate in corrupt institutions.
(d) Undermine feminism by being too nurturing.

4. In "Literature and Public Life," Morrison says that the public interest has been redefined as what?
(a) Extremism.
(b) Class warfare.
(c) Special interests.
(d) Private interest.

5. According to "Harlem on My Mind," almost 28 years after the "Harlem" exhibit, the Guggenheim museum did what?
(a) Devoted an entire exhibition to Romare Bearden.
(b) Focused on the question of what makes Black art Black.
(c) Excluded Black artists from a major retrospective exhibition.
(d) Mounted an exhibition more concerned with Black politics than art.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is it that Morrison says distinguishes globalism from previous movements?

2. In "Race Matters," what word does Morrison call an unsatisfying and shallow ending for Beloved?

3. In her "Sarah Lawrence Commencement Address," Morrison says that one of her aims is to do what?

4. In "The Nobel Lecture in Literature," What does Morrison refer to with the phrase "tongue-suicide"?

5. In the story that opens "The Nobel Lecture in Literature," what do the children ask the old woman about?

Short Essay Questions

1. In “Black Matter(s)," what point is Morrison illustrating with the excerpt she includes from Bailyn's Voyagers of the West?

2. In “The Habit of Art," why does Morrison allude to Antigone?

3. In her "Sarah Lawrence Commencement Address,” how does Morrison define dreaming and why does she think it is important?

4. In “Black Matter(s)," what does Morrison mean by the term "Africanism"?

5. According to Morrison's “Women, Race, and Memory," what are the assumptions behind infighting among women?

6. In “The Dead of September 11,” Morrison alludes to a famous speech. What speech does she allude to and what is the purpose of this allusion?

7. In “The Foreigner’s Home,” what point is Morrison making with her discussion of The Radiance of the King?

8. In “Black Matter(s)," in what ways does Morrison say Africanism has become a "disabling virus"?

9. In “Black Matter(s)," what main points does Morrison make about the alleged race-neutrality of American history?

10. In “Women, Race, and Memory” how does Morrison describe the way "non-aligned" women are viewed by feminists and anti-feminists, and how do non-aligned women view them?

(see the answer keys)

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