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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. According to a student survey cited by Vance in Chapter 12, what percentage of Yale Law Schools students qualify as upper-middle class or higher?

2. Vance notes in Chapter 13 that if Usha had possessed a terrible personality, she would have made an excellent heroine in a novel by what author?

3. Who is the journalist and opinion leader who now writes for The Atlantic that Vance worked for as a contributor on his website?

4. What kind of wine does Vance describe having asked for at the elite meeting with a law agency based on its ability to be pronounced in Chapter 13?

5. At what store in Washington, D.C. does Vance describe standing in before Christmas last year in the Conclusion?

Short Essay Questions

1. How was the Marine Corps beneficial to Vance's later success in life?

2. How does Vance perceive American politics in regards to how they are judged in poor communities in his Conclusion?

3. What problems with the foster care system in the U.S. are discussed by Vance in Chapter 15?

4. Why did Vance tell the woman at the gas station that his girlfriend attended Yale in Chapter 12?

5. How does Vance describe his years at Ohio State University?

6. Why was golf the sport that Vance's grandmother encouraged him to learn?

7. How does Vance describe the Christmas celebrations within Usha and Bonnie's families in childhood in the Conclusion?

8. What does Vance describe as the single most determinant for a person's success in Chapter 15?

9. What led to Vance's decision to join the Marine Corps?

10. Why did Vance go to the motel in Middletown in Chapter 15?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss the history of the Rust Belt region in the U. S. How did the Rust Belt get its name? When did the Rust Belt experience a boom in economy and movement into this region? When did the region begin to decline and why?

Essay Topic 2

How does Vance describe his relationship with Lindsay growing up? How much older is Lindsay than J. D. Vance? How does he feel about the role that Lindsay played in his life today?

Essay Topic 3

Who are Mamaw and Papaw's three children? How does Vance describe them in the memoir? Who is Vance's mother and how does he describe his relationship with her growing up?

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