View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following sounds does the narrator of “Of Course She Looked Back” report hearing?
(a) Roosters howling.
(b) Winds howling.
(c) Pigeons howling.
(d) Dogs howling.

2. Which of the following is the first line of “How to Go to Dinner with a Brother on Drugs”?
(a) “He sat cross-legged, weeping on the steps.”
(b) “If he’s wearing knives for eyes.”
(c) “The phone rings—my brother was arrested again.”
(d) “—my parents live without light, groping.”

3. Which of the following gaming systems does the narrator note as strewn across her parents’ floor?
(a) Commodore.
(b) Atari.
(c) Nintendo.
(d) Colecovision.

4. Which of the following fruits does the narrator of “Toward the Amaranth Gates of War or Love” include among “all the things we want to taste” (75)?
(a) Blood orange.
(b) Key lime.
(c) Eureka lemon.
(d) Star Ruby grapefruit.

5. Which of the following weapons does the narrator describe as “blue tapers” in “Lorca’s Red Dresses” (87)?
(a) Swords.
(b) Cannons.
(c) Knives.
(d) Guns.

Short Answer Questions

1. Before the gates of which of the following does the narrator offer to prostrate herself?

2. Which of the following is the first line of “Toward the Amaranth Gates of War or Love”?

3. For which of the following holidays does the narrator’s brother dress in “How to Go to Dinner with a Brother on Drugs”?

4. Which of the following kinds of sailing ship does the narrator consider in “Monday Aubade”?

5. Which of the following does the narrator include among “the perpetual exhibits” in her parents’ home (46)?

Short Essay Questions

1. In “Self-Portrait as a Chimera,” the narrator presents herself as facing execution. How does she relate herself to her lover as she does?

2. For what reason does the narrator note having hosted her brother?

3. What does the narrator note possibly wanting to see fall near the end of “Black Magic Brother”?

4. How does the narrator of “When the Beloved Asks, ‘What Would You Do if You Woke Up and I Was a Shark?’” note answering the question of the title?

5. What annoyance does the narrator note finding in Jesus in “Soirée Fantastique”?

6. How does the narrator summarize the appearance of her parents’ home in “How to Go to Dinner with a Brother on Drugs”?

7. In what circumstances does the narrator of “When the Beloved Asks, ‘What Would You Do if You Woke Up and I Was a Shark?’” note having considered the question of the title?

8. What does the narrator posit might be the worst part of the funeral for her brother?

9. What music does the narrator claim to hear when her beloved eats an apple?

10. How does the narrator of “I Lean Out the Window and She Nods Off in Bed, the Needle Gently Rocking on the Bedside Table” note having been created?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 857 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample