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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. What is the name of Cleofilas’ son in the story?

2. What is translated from Spanish as “who knows, beyond the Indians”?

3. Cleofilas thinks as she laments her unhappy marriage, “Everything happened to women with names like” what?

4. In the beginning of the story, Cleofilas’ father imagines her one day dreaming of returning to what “that never ended”?

5. Where had Cleofilas seen women being struck before her husband began beating her?

Short Essay Questions

1. What symbolic elements in the story represent the borders that alienate Cleofilas?

2. What is Cleofilas’ reply when Juan Pedro asks her why she is anxious about seeing the doctor?

3. What does Cleofilas consider about her name in comparison with the characters from the telenovelas?

4. What happens when Cleofilas meets Felice in “Woman Hollering Creek”?

5. How does Cleofilas compare romantic love to the love between parent and child?

6. What are Cleofilas’ feelings about the character of Felice in “Woman Hollering Creek”?

7. How does the meaning of the creek’s name change to Cleofilas at the end of the story?

8. What is significant about the names “Felice,” “Graciela,” and “Cleofilas” in the story? What meanings do these names have?

9. How is Cleofilas’ laughter described at the end of the story? What does the laughter symbolize?

10. Where does the character of Dolores live? How is this character and her home described in “Woman Hollering Creek”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the history, location, and mythology of Woman Hollering Creek, located near Seguin, Texas. When was the creek given this name? Who gave the creek this name? Why is this name used as the title for the short story? How does the creek relate to Cleofilas as protagonist?

Essay Topic 2

Plot Structure

a. Discuss the plot structure of “Woman Hollering Creek.” In what ways is the narrative related and what effect does this have on the reader?

b. How does “Woman Hollering Creek” compare with other novels and short stories written during this time period? Are there specific stylistic elements that can be seen in Sandra Cisneros’ writing?

Essay Topic 3

Reality versus Fantasy in “Woman Hollering Creek”

a. Describe and discuss the various fantasies that Cleofilas engages in throughout the story. What do these fantasies revolve around? How do they compare with fantasies of your own?

b. Describe the realities of marriage and living in the United States for Cleofilas in the narrative. In what ways is Cleofilas isolated and alienated in this setting? How does her reality differ from her fantasies?

(see the answer keys)

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