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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. What social trend does Wilkerson link to the 2016 election?
(a) An increase in hate crimes.
(b) A rise in anxiety and depression.
(c) The offshoring of manufacturing jobs.
(d) A decrease in undocumented immigration.

2. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," what figure of speech does Wilkerson use when she says that modern caste protocols "are like the wind" (212)?
(a) Simile.
(b) Personification.
(c) Metaphor.
(d) Understatement.

3. In "Pillar Number Six: Dehumanization and Stigma," Wilkerson explains that enslaved people were not allowed to cry as their families were separated. What is this meant to serve as an example of?
(a) Dehumanization.
(b) Minstrelsy.
(c) Stigma.
(d) Mockery.

4. According to "The Trials of the Middle Castes: The Race to Get Under the White Tent," what caused the Supreme Court to rule that "White" means "Caucasian"?
(a) An Irish immigrant was arrested for shopping in a store signed "No Irish."
(b) An Indian immigrant argued that he should be considered for citizenship.
(c) A Japanese immigrant tried to make the case that he should be considered "White."
(d) A Cuban immigrant sued for the right to own property in Florida.

5. What does Tushar, from the London conference in "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," say caused him to question the caste system?
(a) The treatment his father received by members of the highest caste.
(b) His own status as a Dalit.
(c) The disparity in privilege he witnessed in India.
(d) His Hindu faith.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Chapter Fourteen: The Intrusion of Caste in Everyday Life," what does Wilkerson compare to the modern phenomenon of whites calling the police on Blacks who are just going about ordinary everyday business?

2. In "Chapter Twelve: A Scapegoat to Bear the Sins of the World," what does Wilkerson say Austin police initially said about the bomb-related death of Stephan House?

3. According to "Pillar Number Four: Purity versus Pollution," what makes the United States's racial hierarchy different from those in the rest of the Americas?

4. In "Pillar Number Five: Occupational Hierarchy: The Jatis and the Mudsill," what is the rhetorical purpose of including the Hammond quotes?

5. In "Chapter Six: The Measure of Humanity," where does Wilkerson say that the idea of race began?

(see the answer key)

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