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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Chapter Eleven: Dominant Group Status Threat and the Precarity of the Highest Rung," what does Wilkerson argue the lowest-status Whites have been given in the place of real security and opportunity?
(a) The possibility of climbing into the middle class.
(b) Dominance over political systems.
(c) The illusion of racial superiority.
(d) False promises about economic growth.

2. In "Chapter Twenty-Four: Cortisol, Telomeres, and the Lethality of Caste," how many years does Wilkerson say separate the average life expectancy of White college graduates from that of Black college graduates?
(a) 10.
(b) 8.
(c) 2.
(d) 4.

3. In "Chapter Fifteen: The Urgent Necessity of a Bottom Rung," what does Wilkerson say is the "greatest threat to a caste system" (224)?
(a) Lower-caste success.
(b) Upper-caste failure.
(c) Upper-caste success.
(d) Lower-caste failure.

4. 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) Although intended to help primarily Black Americans, these programs have largely served whites.
(b) White American opposed them initially because they were afraid the aid would go to Blacks.
(c) Black Americans used these programs as their first "leg up" toward the middle class.
(d) They were created to help white Americans, and Blacks were largely excluded from their assistance.

5. In "Chapter Twenty: The Inevitable Narcissism of Caste," what term does Wilkerson introduce that refers to a white person explaining to a Black person something that the Black person has better credentials to understand?
(a) Whitesplaining.
(b) Bulldozing.
(c) Brahmin-splaining.
(d) Boundary-blindness.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," whom does Wilkerson quote as saying that there was nothing more important than making sure that Obama did not win a second election?

2. In "Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Price We Pay for a Caste System," what does Wilkerson blame for the relatively low quality of life in the United States?

3. In "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste," Wilkerson uses the term "kitchen table appeals" (327). What kinds of appeals are these?

4. What fact does Wilkerson offer in "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste" to refute the common idea that economic insecurity cause people to vote for Trump?

5. In the conference described in "Chapter Ten: Central Miscasting," what difficulty does Wilkerson face?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Wilkerson's purpose in telling the story of Devonte Hart in "Chapter Twenty-Two: The Stockholm Syndrome and the Survival of the Subordinate Caste"?

2. Explain what Wilkerson finds particularly abhorrent about the film clip of Hitler that she describes in "Chapter Nineteen: The Euphoria of Hate."

3. What is "dominant group status threat" and how does Wilkerson link it to mortality statistics in "Chapter Eleven: Dominant Group Status Threat and the Precarity of the Highest Rung"?

4. In "Chapter Twenty-Six: Turning Point and the Resurgence of Caste," what does Wilkerson say about understanding the voting of lower-class whites?

5. In "Chapter Sixteen: Last Place Anxiety: Packed in a Flooding Basement," what is the "crabs in a barrel" phenomenon Wilkerson discusses, and what additional way to look at the same situation does she propose?

6. What principle is Wilkerson trying to illustrate with her personal anecdotes about flying first class in "Chapter Twenty-Three: Shock Troops on the Borders of Hierarchy"?

7. What is "variolation," and how did the route of its introduction into Colonial America interfere with its adoption?

8. "Chapter Seventeen: On the Early Front Lines of Caste" tells the story of Allison Davis's early career. Who was he, and what important work did he contribute to scholarship about race in America?

9. Summarize the story Wilkerson tells in "Chapter Twenty-One: The German Girl with the Dark, Wavy Hair."

10. According to Wilkerson, in "Chapter Twenty-Five: A Change in the Script," what impact has the census prediction for 2042 had on Whites in America?

(see the answer keys)

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