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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. What was Rodriguez like as a student?

2. What does Rodriguez say is the real reason for his success?

3. Where do Rodriguez's parents speak Spanish and where do they speak English?

4. How does Rodriguez's mother react to his educational accomplishments?

5. As Rodriguez reaches the end of his education, what does he have to confront?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Rodriguez identify as the symbol of how these two versions of Catholicism intersect in his life?

2. Rodriguez's family continues to speak to him in Spanish. What does that suggest about what they think about the value of Spanish?

3. Why is Rodriguez writing this book? Identify two reasons.

4. How does Rodriguez respond when people ask him how he was successful in school? Is his answer completely honest? Why or why not?

5. How does Rodriguez describe each language (Spanish and English) differently?

6. How does the parents' desire for a good education end up hurting their family?

7. Does Rodriguez's family have the same level of education he does?

8. What do other people think of the "scholarship boy"?

9. Why does Rodriguez say he spent so many years in the classroom?

10. What conflicting messages does Rodriguez's father give him about getting an education?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many books written by minority authors identify the discrimination, challenges, and disadvantages faced by people of that minority group or culture. Rodriguez does acknowledge some of those things, but for the most part, his story is remarkably positive about ethnicity. In some cases, he actually identifies his ethnicity as a benefit or an advantage.

Part One: Identify at least two places in the book where Rodriguez identifies some element of his ethnicity as an advantage rather than a disadvantage.

Part Two: As a reader, what do you think about his handling of the ethnicity issue? Is he making things sound better than they really are? Do you think other writers might make things sound worse than they really are?

Part Three: Which approach would you rather read? Do you think your opinion has anything to do with your ethnicity or your life experience?

Essay Topic 2

Part One: Compare and contrast Rodriguez's childhood view of religion and his adult view of religion.

Part Two: Rodriguez acknowledges that the church itself changed some of its practices as he grew up. What effect did that have on his decision to stay Catholic? Did it encourage him to re-evaluate his religious beliefs and practices?

Essay Topic 3

Rodriguez is told that men behave in one way and women behave in another way. He is embarrassed because based on those standards, he acts more like a woman than a man.

Part One: How does Rodriguez's family define male and female behavior? Why do you think they have those opinions?

Part Two: Do the characters in the book follow those guidelines for male and female behavior? What happens to characters who do not follow the guidelines? What happens to characters who do follow the guidelines? What is Rodriguez saying about gender roles?

(see the answer keys)

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