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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. What does Julia tie near Mary’s head for help during labor?

2. What happened if the children linked arms at the school, according to Bridie?

3. What holiday honors the church penitent—the holy souls in purgatory?

4. What does Julia whisper in Bridie's ear to tell a doctor regarding Mary's labor?

5. What does Bridie say about the past two days in "Black"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Julia react to Bridie's kiss? Why does she react this way?

2. Julia stands up to Sister Luke in "Blue." What does she say to Sister Luke? What gives Julia the confidence to do this?

3. What are some of the reasons that Bridie and the other children were beaten?

4. What does Julia realize will happen, regarding Bridie, once the hospital goes back to normal?

5. What is Sister Luke's response when Julia asks if the unwed mothers may take their babies home?

6. What is Dr. Lynn's response when Julia questions her regarding her support of violence?

7. In "Black" (Pages 235-265), what does Julia think about the line on the propaganda poster regarding lying down for a fortnight?

8. To what story does Bridie compare Mary and her baby as she watches Mary nurse her baby?

9. Why does Julia somewhat regret standing up to Sister Luke?

10. What does Julia do to relieve some of Mary's labor pains?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

One character dies in Brown and a death that took place in Red is dealt with in Brown. Describe these characters and how the hospital deals with them. Why might they deal with them in this way? Do you believe this is appropriate? Why or why not? How does this compare with the deaths and how they were handled in Red?

Essay Topic 2

Homosexual love is brought up multiple times in this story. Describe these relationships. Why might the author have chosen to include these relationships in the story? What might these unconventional relationships be connected to the title of the book?

Essay Topic 3

There are several aspects of this book and how it was written that are a unique. Describe at least two of these. Why might the author have chosen to do this? How do these choices affect the reader and the ease of reading? How might these choices relate to the story? Do you believe these were good choices? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 950 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample