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

2. In "Black Matter(s)," what aspect of American slavery does Morrison claim makes its impact so long-lasting in American culture?

3. "Noblesse oblige" is a philosophy that urged the nobility to do what?

4. In "The Future of Time," Morrison points to what two forces as responsible for our modern relationship to the future?

5. In "The Price of Wealth, the Cost of Care," Morrison compares money to what?

Short Essay Questions

1. In her "Sarah Lawrence Commencement Address,” how does Morrison define dreaming and why does she think it is important?

2. In “The Habit of Art," why does Morrison allude to Antigone?

3. In “Black Matter(s)," in what ways does Morrison say Africanism has become a "disabling virus"?

4. In “The Dead of September 11,” Morrison alludes to a famous speech. What speech does she allude to and what is the purpose of this allusion?

5. In “Literature and Public Life," what does Morrison blame television for, and what does she propose as a solution?

6. What current problems with arts funding does Morrison identify in “Arts Advocacy”?

7. In “The Slavebody and the Blackbody,” how does Morrison differentiate between these two kinds of bodies, and why does she bother?

8. in “The Price of Wealth, the Cost of Care," what stages does Morrison trace the evolution of Western culture's attitude toward the accumulation of money?

9. In “Black Matter(s)," what point is Morrison illustrating with the excerpt she includes from Bailyn's Voyagers of the West?

10. In “Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.," what does Morrison say that she wonders about MLK, and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In “A Race in Mind: The Press in Deed,” Morrison introduced the motif of minstrelsy that will recur throughout her work. What is minstrelsy, and how does it relate to the ideas she explores of the “self” and the “other”?

Essay Topic 2

In “Women, Race, and Memory,” Morrison evokes the figure of Harriet Tubman. Who is Harriet Tubman, and what associations does Morrison hope to create by telling an anecdote about her?

Essay Topic 3

In "The Source of Self-Regard," Morrison discusses the image of a bit--a kind of torture device used to silence slaves. Explain how she incorporates this into Beloved--how she conveys the idea to the reader and why she makes the choices she does.

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