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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. Why does the speaker in "Necessity" finally decide he has to work after all?

2. Which color hands are NOT mentioned in "Daybreak in Alabama"?

3. What does the speaker in "Cross" wish in regard to his mother?

4. What does the speaker compare love to in "Lament over Love"?

5. What does the little boy use as a toy in "Madam and the Charity Child"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Madam prefer to handle her suitors?

2. What historical figure might Madam Alberta K. Johnson be based upon?

3. What is the common tone of the pieces in "Life Is Fine"?

4. What comparison is made in "Me and the Mule"?

5. Why does the speaker in "Third Degree" confess to police?

6. What does the speaker in "High to Low" accuse the "low" African-Americans of doing?

7. How does the speaker compare his relationship with the South and the North in "The South"?

8. What observation does the speaker make about the people riding the subway in "Subway Rush Hour"?

9. What do both "Still Here" and "Me and the Mule" celebrate?

10. What is the commonality between all of the poems in "Lament Over Love"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In a well-written essay, discuss 1) 3 reasons why it is important to know information about an author when analyzing a literary text and 2) one example for each reason of how knowing about Hughes helps the reader better understand a poem (or part of a poem) of your choosing.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze 1) the tone of "50-50," 2) the relationship between the two characters in the poem, and 3) how the tone helps the reader better understand the relationship dynamics between these two characters. Make sure to include direct quotations from the poem to support your well-written thesis statement.

Essay Topic 3

Find three examples of personification in "Selected Poems of Langston Hughes" and discuss how and why Hughes uses each in the manner that he does.

(see the answer keys)

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