View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Occupied," what does Ivy see that looks like a statue at first?

2. In "Occupied," Ivy sees a "doppelgänger." What does she see?

3. In "Occupied," what is Ivy's profession?

4. At the beginning of "Green Glass," what does Fran want to know about Tom's ex-girlfriend?

5. In "Occupied," what "theme" does Ivy notice among the various protest signs (39)?

Short Essay Questions

1. In "Occupied," what construction is happening near the park, and what is its significance?

2. In "Occupied," where does Ivy stop on the way home from work, and why does she stop there?

3. In "Occupied," what is implied by the repeated descriptions of the wind?

4. In "Green Glass," how does Tom react when he realizes that Fran was once romantically involved with the lawyer at the party?

5. In "Polepole," Daisy's comment of "I don't even know where I am" (3) has both a literal and a figurative meaning. Explain why this is so.

6. In "Green Glass," what causes Tom's ex to slap him, and what is his response to the incident?

7. In "Polepole," what difference is there between the way Daisy and "the man" view Kibera?

8. In "Green Glass," what concern does Fran express about Tom's relationship with his ex, and how does Tom respond to her concerns?

9. In "Polepole," what meaning does Daisy assign to the look Cecily gives her at the end of the story?

10. In "Polepole," what is the significance of Bragg's wink when he leaves Daisy to talk with "the man"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about the role that parents play in Minot's collection. Do you think that the role parents play in shaping our personalities, beliefs about the world, and adult capacities is portrayed realistically or unrealistically? Use evidence from at least three stories in the collection to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 2

Some critics point out that Minot's writing appears to come from a place of privilege that marginalizes characters and concerns from outside of white, hetero-normative, middle- and upper-class society. Write an essay that responds in some way to this concern. You may affirm the idea, refute it, or qualify it. Support your ideas with textual evidence; if you use outside sources, cite them in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay that addresses the inclusion of a gender nonconforming character in "Boston Common at Twilight." This is the only such character in the collection: is it troubling that they are a sexual criminal, as well, or is this simply necessary to the plot? Is the story one that needs to be told, or does it have nothing new to say? Is Minot's story successful enough as an artistic endeavor to justify what might otherwise be seen as a choice that reinforces the marginalization of part of the population? If you use outside sources in your essay, be sure to cite them in MLA format.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,190 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample