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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 pet name does Sykes call Bertha when they are in the store?
(a) Darling.
(b) Honey.
(c) Sweetness.
(d) Kitten.

2. In what kind of establishment does Bertha live while having her rent paid in Eatonville?
(a) A brothel.
(b) A boarding house.
(c) A bed-and-breakfast.
(d) A revival tent.

3. What does Delia do at the kitchen table just before she stands up and tells Sykes that she hates him?
(a) She pushes her plate away.
(b) She yanks on the tablecloth.
(c) She clears the table.
(d) She throws her cup against the wall.

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

5. In what town had Bertha lived previously before coming to Eatonville?
(a) Apalachicola.
(b) Apopka.
(c) Talahassee.
(d) Orlando.

Short Answer Questions

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

2. For how long has Bertha been living in Eatonville on the day Sykes takes her to the store?

3. When Sykes refuses to take the snake away and says that he does not have to do anything besides take a particular action, what action does he say he must do?

4. How much does Joe Clarke ask each man to give him in order to pay for the watermelon they will all share?

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

Short Essay Questions

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

2. How do Delia's actions and feelings in regard to the rattlesnake change once she sees its fangs wrapped around the wire mesh of its box?

3. How does the snake's behavior change once it has taken two or three days to digest its large meal of frogs?

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

5. What is the significance of the snake baring its "scimitar" (6)-like fangs at Delia?

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

7. What causes a "determined silence" (4) to fall over the porch when the men are about to slice the watermelon?

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

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

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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