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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. The narrator states that when his parents do serve alcoholic beverages at a party, they serve what?

2. As the young woman referred to as "Queenie" (5) answers Lengel, she takes what action?

3. When the narrator imagines the home of the young woman he calls "Queenie" (5), what are the men at the party wearing?

4. What is NOT a register button Sammy hits while ringing up the young woman's purchase?

5. What adjective does the narrator use to describe the speech of the young woman to whom he refers as "Queenie" (5)?

Short Essay Questions

1. What type of home life does Sammy imagine for the young woman he dubs "Queenie" (5)?

2. What is Lengel's reply to Sammy's accusation?

3. Describe Updike's use of foreshadowing within the story "A and P".

4. How does the young woman dubbed "Queenie" (5) by Sammy react to Lengel's actions?

5. Discuss a possible reason for Lengel's request for Sammy to repeat his words "I quit" (22).

6. For what reason and in what manner does Lengel confront the three young women in the store?

7. How is the theme of family bonds depicted within Sammy's reply to Lengel's claim about the harm inflicted by the young women?

8. How does Updike show the childlike and whimsical nature of Sammy's personality in the story?

9. Why does Sammy use haste when saying "I quit" (22) the first time?

10. How is repetition utilized within Paragraph 21?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

William Faulkner once famously claimed that the most important literature deals with the subject of the human heart in conflict with itself. Explain how the theme of Human versus Self is demonstrated within Updike’s story “A and P.” Create a decisive, arguable claim and prove it with quotes from the story.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the interplay between the resolution of Updike’s story “A and P” and one of the story's main messages. How does Updike make connections between these elements and how does their juxtaposition help Updike get across one main message of the story?

Essay Topic 3

Trace the characterization arc of Sammy’s character throughout the story. Discuss whether Sammy is a round or flat character and whether he is a static or dynamic character.

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