90 pages 3 hours read

James Baldwin

If Beale Street Could Talk

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1974

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Exam Questions

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. According to Tish, who should be ashamed?

A) The poor Puerto Rican women

B) The people who are in charge of the jails

C) The hardworking Black men and women

D) The New York City government

2. As Tish ponders the meaning of “being in trouble,” she notes:

But, at the same time, and even on the self-same day—and this is what is hard to explain—you see people like you never saw them before. They shine as bright as a razor. Maybe it’s because you see people differently than before your trouble started. Maybe you wonder about them more, but in a different way, and this makes them very strange to you. Maybe you get scared and numb, because you don’t know if you can depend on people for anything, anymore. (Part 1, Pages 3-75)

Which of the following literary terms is featured in this quote?

A) Allusion

B) Allegory

C) Alliteration

D) Anaphora

3. Which of the following elements does Fonny recall from his parents’ lovemaking?

A) Abuse

B) Peace

C) Reluctance

D) Joy

4. Which of the following phrases is the best example of Alice Hunt as a “sanctified woman”?

A) Ensuring Fonny attended Sunday School so everyone could admire her