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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. Who owns the disreputable boarding house in Eatonville?
(a) Elijah Moseley.
(b) Della Lewis.
(c) Joe Clarke.
(d) Sally Anderson.

2. What item does Sykes NOT buy from Joe Clarke's store during his visit there?
(a) Gum.
(b) Ground-peas.
(c) Strawberry soda.
(d) Barley.

3. What is NOT one event listed as taking place during the dog days of summer in Eatonville?
(a) Snakes shedding.
(b) Leaves browning.
(c) Swimming holes drying up.
(d) Grass withering.

4. In what town does Delia attend church at the time Sykes is keeping the rattlesnake?
(a) Woodbridge.
(b) Eatonville.
(c) Orlando.
(d) Apalachicola.

5. What does Delia tell Sykes he has killed by bringing the snake to the house?
(a) Her contentment.
(b) Her peace.
(c) Her spirit.
(d) Her insides.

Short Answer Questions

1. The narrator says that each time Delia attempts what type of friendliness toward Sykes, her efforts come to naught?

2. What does Sykes say Delia looks like to him when he tells Delia he has hated her for years?

3. Who pays Bertha's rent in Eatonville?

4. What two deity names does Delia yell out when she first lays eyes on the snake Sykes has brought home?

5. What adverb is used to indicate the manner in which Sykes pushes Delia when he wants her to see the rattlesnake he has brought home?

Short Essay Questions

1. For how long has Bertha been in Eatonville and how does she support herself?

2. What does Delia say is different about Bertha in comparison to other women with whom Sykes has had affairs?

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

4. How are Delia's efforts to remain "blind and deaf" (5) to Sykes's adulterous actions thwarted?

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

7. What arguments do the men present when they are trying to get Joe Clarke to bring out a watermelon for them to share?

8. 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)

9. What two differing reasons does Sykes give for why he was able to catch the six-foot rattlesnake in the first place?

10. What is Hurston's purpose for alluding to Gethsemane and the rocks of Calvary during the period of conflict with Sykes?

(see the answer keys)

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