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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 day does Sykes say he has almost forgotten it is when he is about to leave the store with Bertha?
(a) Saturday.
(b) Monday.
(c) Sunday.
(d) Friday.

2. What two deity names does Delia yell out when she first lays eyes on the snake Sykes has brought home?
(a) God and Jesus.
(b) God and Christ.
(c) Holy Mary and Jesus.
(d) Allah and Buddah.

3. What idiom does Sykes use to describe his suggested action for anyone who does not like the snake?
(a) Kiss his grits.
(b) Hit the dirt.
(c) Hit the grit.
(d) Fly a kite.

4. What tool does Joe Clarke offer to lend the men so they can cut the watermelon for sharing?
(a) His meat knife.
(b) His switchblade.
(c) His machete.
(d) His bowie knife.

5. What adjective does Walter use to describe what type of customers he and the other men are during the men's requests for watermelon?
(a) Regular.
(b) Steady.
(c) Loyal.
(d) Generous.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do the men immediately do when Sykes and Bertha arrive at the store when they are about to cut into the watermelon?

2. What two activities does the narrator say that Delia and Sykes now do in silence since their complete impasse?

3. What type of rattlesnake does Sykes say the snake is?

4. What causes the snake to come alive and start to rattle incessantly?

5. What does Delia do at the kitchen table just before she stands up and tells Sykes that she hates him?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Sykes go about showing the rattlesnake to Delia after he has brought it home?

2. What is Sykes's reply to Delia's insistence that he remove the rattlesnake from their home?

3. How does Delia try "to be blind and deaf" (5) to Sykes's gallivanting around town with Bertha?

4. In what way does Sykes accuse Delia of being insincere about her fear of snakes when he brings home the rattlesnake?

5. What argumentative method does Delia use in order to convince Sykes that he needs to take the snake away from her home?

6. What does Sykes mean when he tells Delia not to ask him for anything and comments on her attempt to "goin' roun' trying 'tuh be so damn asterperious"? (6)

7. What is Delia's reason for not trying to get rid of Bertha in some way in order to solve the problems in her marriage?

8. What is ironic about Sykes's statement to Bertha that the town is his and that she can have it if she wants it?

9. What plans does Sykes make with Bertha and what is the significance of these plans?

10. Which elements of Bertha's character are disparaged by the group of men at Joe Clarke's store once she leaves with Sykes?

(see the answer keys)

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