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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. Irving describes in Chapter 7: The GI BIll the way in which she came to view which object from her childhood in a negative light?
(a) Her car.
(b) Her house.
(c) Her bicycle.
(d) Her church.

2. Irving uses an analogy in Chapter 8: Racial Categories that uses what physical attribute to stand in for race?
(a) Hair color.
(b) Foot length.
(c) Eye color.
(d) Finger length.

3. Irving states that American culture and government have always rejected the idea of America as what object?
(a) A mosaic.
(b) A utopia.
(c) A melting pot.
(d) A city on a hill.

4. By what decade had "pale skin become a beauty ideal for white people, making its way into European art and literature" (57)?
(a) The 1920s.
(b) The 1860s.
(c) The 1790s.
(d) The 1720s.

5. In the story Irving uses to open Chapter 1: What Wasn't Said, how old was she at the time?
(a) 5.
(b) 3.
(c) 10.
(d) 7.

Short Answer Questions

1. Irving describes growing up in an affluent suburb of which American city?

2. In Chapter 3: Race Versus Class, Irving states that "Understanding" what, "regardless of class, is key to understanding racism" (26)?

3. In Chapter 6: From Confusion to Shock, Irving describes moving to the city of Cambridge in which state after college?

4. The activity at the end of Chapter 4: Optimism asks the reader to think about "major economic, political, demographic, and pop culture trends" (35) that occurred how many years before their birth, through the age of 20?

5. Chapter 5: Within the Walls asks readers to reconsider the definition of which term?

Short Essay Questions

1. Which movement within history does Irving wish her parents had discussed with her?

2. Compare and contrast the answer Irving's mother gave her in Chapter 1: What Wasn't Said with the answer Irving believes should have been delivered.

3. What is the motivation for the dominant culture's stance regarding America as either a melting pot or a mosaic?

4. What message does Irving send in Chapter 3: Race Versus Class about the distinction between those two elements of society?

5. What is another term for inattentional blindness and what do the two terms mean?

6. Discuss the impact of the philosophy of colorblindness as it relates to the fight for social justice.

7. What is the symbolism of the set of diplomas described in Chapter 16: Logos and Stereotypes?

8. For what purpose does Irving include an allusion to Norman Rockwell in Chapter 2: Family Values?

9. Which characteristic did Irving's father stress above all others and why is this fact ironic?

10. What singular conclusion does Irving draw about culture in Chapter 3: Race Versus Class?

(see the answer keys)

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