View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why was Moore fired from Mother Jones?
(a) He brought poor writers into the magazine.
(b) He constantly clashed with the managing editor.
(c) He refused to curb his sharp tongue.
(d) He was in Flint more than in San Francisco.

2. According to Hamper in Chapter 10, why did GM not allow the NBC film crew into the factory?
(a) GM had strict publicity rules.
(b) Hamper had already used his favors to get The Wall Street Journal writer in.
(c) GM did not trust anything Hamper wanted to do.
(d) GM believed any creativity came from a flawed mind.

3. At the beginning of Chapter Six, as Hamper explains, what do the rednecks on the Rivet Line collect?
(a) Banana stickers.
(b) Beer caps.
(c) Broken rivet heads.
(d) Sick days.

4. How did Hamper prepare for his interview for the Mother Jones cover story?
(a) Reviewed the articles he had written in the past year.
(b) Got a haircut and shave at a barbershop.
(c) Stayed up all night and got drunk.
(d) Ate a big dinner and slept eight hours.

5. What did Hamper remember about his interview for the Mother Jones cover story?
(a) The interviewer nearly fell out of his chair laughing.
(b) Nothing.
(c) He told only one off-color joke.
(d) The cameramen laughed so hard that their cameras shook.

Short Answer Questions

1. If a person had to wait in the chairs along the edges of the unemployment office, what did Hamper recommend that he do?

2. What job did Jan, Hamper's second wife, have?

3. Why does Hamper want to avoid his grandfather at the family reunion?

4. Why did Hamper take a long time learning his job on the Rivet Line?

5. Why did Hamper refuse to enroll in an outpatient mental health center?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kind of relationship did Gino have with his men? Why did this lead to his eventual transfer away from the Rivet Line?

2. Who did Bob-A-Lou have a crush on? What does this reveal about his character and how was he different from most of the other factory workers?

3. What was the purpose of Hamper's food matching game (pgs 78-79)? What effect does the game have to the writing of this scene?

4. How did Hamper stumble onto writing? What does this say about him as a writer?

5. At the beginning of Chapter 5, how did Hamper portray the employees of the Michigan Employment Security Commission? Is this a fair picture?

6. What was Hamper's reaction to the news that Louise Mandrell had ordered a GM Suburban? How does this fit what the reader already knows about Hamper's personality?

7. What conversation did Hamper and his grandfather have during the family reunion? How does this fittingly illustrate the difference in their generations?

8. What new vehicle was the factory hired to build? How was this, written in Hamper's account of life, a sign of the times?

9. Why were Moore and Hamper summoned to appear in court? How does this scene demonstrate Hamper's chosen place in the world?

10. According to Hamper, why does the reading public not want to read about the working man? Is this a fair assessment?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,946 words (approx. 7 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample