View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 4: "Part Four: The Tentacles of Caste".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "A Long-Running Play and the Emergence of Caste in America," what does the Nigerian playwright tell Wilkerson about Blacks in Africa?
(a) They do not exist.
(b) They also have a history of slavery.
(c) They are afraid to come to the U.S.
(d) They are also prejudiced against Black Americans.

2. According to Wilkerson in "The Second Pillar: Heritability," what happened to Forest Whitaker at a Manhattan Deli?
(a) He was assaulted by a police officer.
(b) A customer assumed that he was a busboy.
(c) He was accused of shoplifting.
(d) An employee referred to him using a racial epithet.

3. In "Chapter Twelve: A Scapegoat to Bear the Sins of the World," what change in the concept of the scapegoat does Wilkerson say has occurred over time?
(a) Modern scapegoats are not literally sacrificed.
(b) Modern scapegoats are also blamed for the problems they are made to suffer for.
(c) Scapegoating is now performed by whole communities.
(d) Scapegoating is now primarily subconscious.

4. In the conference described in "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," what difficulty does Wilkerson face?
(a) Being stared at for sitting in front.
(b) The scholars in attendance refuse to speak to her.
(c) The crowd is openly hostile to her presentation.
(d) Getting copies of the papers being presented.

5. In "Chapter Eleven: Dominant Group Status Threat and the Precarity of the Highest Rung," what does Wilkerson reveal about the New Deal and the Federal Housing Administration?
(a) White American opposed them initially because they were afraid the aid would go to Blacks.
(b) They were created to help white Americans, and Blacks were largely excluded from their assistance.
(c) Black Americans used these programs as their first "leg up" toward the middle class.
(d) Although intended to help primarily Black Americans, these programs have largely served whites.

Short Answer Questions

1. In the 1863 Draft Riots, what immigrant group perpetrated violence against Blacks?

2. Besides the caste systems in India and the United States, which other caste system does Wilkerson say that she will focus on?

3. In "Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy: The Jatis and the Mudsill," what does Wilkerson say Blacks found when they migrated North during the Great Migration?

4. In Wilkerson's anecdote about the house inspector, how does he "see past the plaster" (17)?

5. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," Wilkerson relays the story of a Black woman who visits a new white neighbor. What is the white neighbor's response?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 540 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample