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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. To which of the following does the narrator compare the Tiko?

2. Which of the following whitening creams does the narrator note as highest quality?

3. Which of the following does the narrator note had been his first choice for Nigel’s schooling?

4. Which of the following pieces of equipment does the narrator note police surveillance vans carry?

5. To which of the following does the narrator compare Penny?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the narrator note had been done to the face of his bellhop at Shanksted?

2. What options does the narrator outline for answering a question about his opinion as “the onliest black guy in the room” (8)?

3. How is Tyrod described when the narrator encounters him in Supercargo’s apartment?

4. What scenario do the narrator and Nigel role-play while stuck in traffic on the way to Jo Jo’s?

5. What reason does the narrator give for misliking going to court, despite his skill therein?

6. What accoutrements does the narrator note accompany his Roman centurion costume?

7. What does the narrator note the Racing Form tracks?

8. How does the narrator note that Penny and his mother regarded each other initially?

9. What functions in the community does the narrator ascribe to the Chicken Coop?

10. What reasons does the narrator express for seeking Jo Jo’s help with Octavia’s campaign?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What purpose is served by the scene in which the narrator, Penny, and Nigel tour Shanksted Plantation, just before Nigel goes missing (50-54)? What in the text and experience indicates that purpose? How does it do so?

Essay Topic 2

Early on, the narrator notes the contents of Octavia’s library, which include Eyes without a Face, The Hip Hop Ontologist’s View of Leda and the Swan, and Blackstone’s Law; Octavia notes that the books are “real, but mainly for effect” (8). What effect are they likely to have, and why?

Essay Topic 3

The narrator remarks that “we lawyers are conservative creatures. Fly me a sheet of paper over an electrical current. Watch me convert it into paper” (209). What in the novel and in experience supports the remark? How does it do so?

(see the answer keys)

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