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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "The Slavebody and the Blackbody," what does Morrison call the "ghost in the machine"?
(a) Poverty.
(b) Racism.
(c) The slavebody.
(d) The blackbody.

2. According to "Harlem on My Mind," the term "postblack" refers to whom?
(a) Black artists who want their art to be evaluated by aesthetic standards only--not classified according to their race.
(b) Critics who make race the key factor in their analysis of works of art.
(c) Critics who refuse to evaluate Black art according to the aesthetics of the Black community.
(d) Black artists who distance themselves from Blackness by identifying with white culture.

3. In "The Future of Time," Morrison worries that we increasingly turn to the past for what?
(a) Visions of what our future could be.
(b) Answers to current problems.
(c) Evidence to confirm our biases.
(d) Philosophical wisdom.

4. In "Cinderella's Stepsisters," Morrison's central claim is that women should not do what?
(a) Oppress other women.
(b) Participate in corrupt institutions.
(c) Risk the gains women have made by trying to move forward too quickly.
(d) Undermine feminism by being too nurturing.

5. In her "Sarah Lawrence Commencement Address," Morrison defines "dreaming" as what?
(a) An impractical luxury we cannot afford in modern times.
(b) A meditative state that improves the creative capacity of the Self.
(c) Wasted time engaged in wishful thinking.
(d) Deliberate imagining that creates intimacy with the Other.

6. To whom does Morrison address her remarks about the dead of September 11, 2001?
(a) To the terrorists responsible for the deaths.
(b) To the dead themselves.
(c) To the families of the dead.
(d) To all Americans.

7. In "Black Matter(s)," Morrison says that a key "absence" in writing about racism is the omission of its impact on whom?
(a) Non-Black minorities.
(b) Perpetrators.
(c) Women.
(d) Future generations.

8. What form of literature does Morrison discuss at length in "Black Matter(s)"?
(a) Slave narratives.
(b) Art criticism.
(c) Religious sermons.
(d) Literary memoirs.

9. Which of the following is a key characteristic of globalism, according to Morrison?
(a) Creating world peace.
(b) The Americanization of the world.
(c) Unity among workers.
(d) Celebration of diversity.

10. According to Morrison, how does fascism arise?
(a) As a series of small, orderly steps.
(b) With sudden revolution.
(c) By insisting that all people be treated identically.
(d) When minority groups gain power over the majority.

11. In "Race Matters," Morrison says that she refuses to write in what voice?
(a) The master's.
(b) The slave's.
(c) A race-specific one.
(d) A masculine one.

12. In "Cinderella's Stepsisters," Morrison says that we must use freedom to do what?
(a) Free others.
(b) Educate ourselves.
(c) Create art.
(d) Overthrow corrupt institutions.

13. In "Tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.," what does Morrison say she wonders about MLK?
(a) How he preserved his sense of hope.
(b) Whether he would be disappointed in her.
(c) Where he found his courage.
(d) Whether he would be satisfied with the progress Americans have made.

14. In "The Price of Wealth, the Cost of Care," why does Morrison include a list of colonial conquests?
(a) To argue that history will always be cruel and inhumane.
(b) To illustrate the bloody history of wealth accumulation.
(c) To question her audience's understanding of history.
(d) To compare the conquerors with the average citizen today.

15. In "A Race in Mind," Morrison asks for more thoughtful work from what group?
(a) Authors.
(b) Art critics.
(c) The press.
(d) Government.

Short Answer Questions

1. In her "Sarah Lawrence Commencement Address," what irony is Morrison's discussion of "Feed the Children" campaigns intended to illustrate?

2. In "Women, Race, and Memory," Morrison divides women into three groups: feminists, anti-feminists, and whom?

3. Morrison claims that after WWII, the language used to discuss war became more what?

4. In "Race Matters," Morrison says that tow of the thematic concerns of her work are race and what?

5. The Radiance of the King is a novel by Camara Laye, an author of what origin?

(see the answer keys)

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