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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. What scrap of Great Grandpa Ezra's clothing is in the quilts?
(a) A piece of his christening gown.
(b) A piece of his wedding pants.
(c) A piece of his old red flannel shirt.
(d) A piece of his Civil War uniform.

2. What does Ms. Johnson think that Dee had at age sixteen?
(a) Artistic talent.
(b) A great singing voice.
(c) A great speaking voice.
(d) A style of her own.

3. Whose hand closes over Grandma Dee's butter dish at dinner?
(a) Hakim-a-barber's.
(b) Wangero's.
(c) Ms. Johnson's.
(d) Maggie's.

4. What noises tell Ms. Johnson someone is standing outside the room in which she and Wangero are?
(a) The radio comes on.
(b) The television set comes on.
(c) Maggies footsteps.
(d) Maggie's breathing.

5. With what has Ms. Johnson primarily been concerned all her life?
(a) Milking cows.
(b) Survival.
(c) Sewing and quilting.
(d) Religion.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Ms. Johnson's dreams, what does Dee pin on her dress on the television program?

2. What color is Ms. Johnson's butter churn dasher?

3. What does Ms. Johnson ask Maggie to bring her at the end of the story?

4. What is the first thing out of the car upon Dee's arrival that identifies Dee to Ms. Johnson?

5. What kind of soil comprises Ms. Johnson's yard?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Dee's sister Maggie feel insecure when Hakim-a-barber tries to shake her hand?

2. What religion is Ms. Johnson in "Everyday Use" and what does her religion indicate about her character?

3. What is Maggie's relationship with Dee like?

4. Alice Walker never names the narrator of this story. The reader is told only that she is a member of the Johnson family. What might the author of "Everyday Use" have intended to convey about the character of Ms. Johnson by not naming her?

5. Explain how Ms. Johnson looks in real life and how her actual appearance differs from how she appears in her dreams.

6. What does Maggie's smile at the end of "Everyday Use" indicate?

7. How does Dee differ from her mother and sister?

8. What do the Johnson family heirlooms like the butter churn and patchwork quilts indicate about the Johnson family and about southern Black culture?

9. Are the Johnsons in "Everyday Use" typical or atypical for rural southern Black families living in the era in which the story is set?

10. What information is revealed about Grandma Dee in "Everyday Use" even though she never appears onstage?

(see the answer keys)

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