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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. In "Race Matters," Morrison says that she refuses to write in what voice?
(a) The slave's.
(b) A masculine one.
(c) A race-specific one.
(d) The master's.

2. In "The Nobel Lecture in Literature," Morrison compares the old woman in the story to what?
(a) A writer.
(b) God.
(c) A reader.
(d) A prophet.

3. In the story that opens "The Nobel Lecture in Literature," where does the old woman say the answer to the children's question is?
(a) In her eyes.
(b) In their hands.
(c) She doesn't actually answer their question.
(d) In their hearts.

4. In "Black Matter(s)," Morrison retells the story of William Dunbar as an example of what?
(a) A prototypical American white male.
(b) A victim of state violence.
(c) A critic who understands the significance of Black art.
(d) A slave who struggled to make his voice heard.

5. The Radiance of the King is a novel by Camara Laye, an author of what origin?
(a) Asian.
(b) North American.
(c) African.
(d) European.

Short Answer Questions

1. Morrison claims that after WWII, the language used to discuss war became more what?

2. In "Women, Race, and Memory," Morrison uses the phrase "internecine conflict." In context, this phrase means what?

3. In "Black Matter(s)," Morrison says that we can understand something important about literary "whiteness" by studying what?

4. In "Literature and Public Life," Morrison says that the public interest has been redefined as what?

5. In "Moral Inhabitants," Morrison says that the ability to make fine distinctions shows what?

Short Essay Questions

1. What current problems with arts funding does Morrison identify in “Arts Advocacy”?

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

3. In “Moral Inhabitants," Morrison opens with some U.S. Census statistics. What are they and why does she include them?

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

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

6. In “The Slavebody and the Blackbody,” how does Morrison differentiate between these two kinds of bodies, and why does she bother?

7. In “Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.," what are the things that Morrison says Dr. King believed in?

8. In “Harlem on My Mind," what does Morrison point to as the causes of the failure of the New York Metropolitan Museum's 1968 exhibit on Harlem?

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

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

(see the answer keys)

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