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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 reason does Nobby give for thinking that Harry will not be able to make a success of his singing career?
(a) He is Black.
(b) He sings the wrong kind of music.
(c) He is easy to manipulate.
(d) He is not talented.

2. What technique is used when the narrator says that "Up in the atmosphere thunder roll with laughter"?
(a) Metonymy.
(b) Hyperbole.
(c) Personification.
(d) Synechdoche.

3. What does Battersby mean when he says "You is one of we" (9)?
(a) The person he is speaking to is from the same background as Battersby.
(b) It is important to remember what we have in common with others.
(c) All people are equal and have equal rights.
(d) There are two people in the conversation and both viewpoints count.

4. Which man volunteers to keep an eye on everyone and fine them if they are caught wasting money on drinking, smoking, or dating?
(a) Alfonso.
(b) Syl.
(c) de Nobriga.
(d) Gallows.

5. Why does Battersby's sister warn Matilda about him?
(a) Battersby already has an illegitimate child.
(b) Battersby did not treat his last girlfriend well.
(c) Battersby is known to lie all the time.
(d) Battersby tries to sleep with all of her friends.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is the author of The Housing Lark?

2. When they are smoking in the park, where does Poor offer to take Harry later that evening?

3. On what day of the week does the story open?

4. What is the narrator's purpose in listing the English behaviors and beliefs that he lists on pages 3 and 4?

5. What word does Poor use to refer to a marijuana cigarette?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the sentence "I mean, you think it have a lot of obeah and black magic in the West Indies, but if you listen to some of these Nordics" illustrate the unusual aspects of this book's narrative voice?

2. What did Battersby often listen to on his radio, and why did he stop?

3. How does Harry end up holding onto Poor's pack of cigarettes for him?

4. To whom does Battersby threaten to complain about his housing situation, and why does he decide against making a complaint?

5. What number does Bat imagine giving his apartment, and why is this important to him?

6. What is ironic about the conversation that Alfy, Nobby, and Syl have about Harry's banjo, and what does this conversation reveal about the men?

7. What is ironic about the story of Fitz's marriage?

8. Describe Battersby's apartment.

9. Which of Bat's friends takes photographs, and what is comical about how he does it?

10. What is ironic about the difference between the food Battersby imagines on page 2 and the food he genuinely likes?

(see the answer keys)

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