Contemporary Fiction

What is irony of situation?

• when an event occurs that violates expectations

• when characters say something they do not mean

• when fantasy is described as if it were reality

• when reality is described as if it were fantasy

What is the main effect in "A Noiseless Flash" of Hersey describing the experiences of specific people rather than recounting what happened in a more general way?

• It makes all the people described in the story seem like heroes.

• It shows the narrow range of people who were directly affected.

• The use of characters makes the piece seem more like fictional literature.

• The bombing and the events surrounding it seem more real and personal.

In "A Noiseless Flash," what was ironic about the sounding of the all-clear?

• A bomb would soon hit Hiroshima.

• People only imagined hearing it.

• None of the survivors heard it.

• The danger was over.

In “Portrait of a Girl in Glass” and The Glass Menagerie, the character of Laura is based on

• a composite of friends and relatives the author knew.

• Tennessee Williams’s sister, who was institutionalized.

• no one; Laura is an entirely imagined character.

• ennessee Williams’s mentally unstable mother.

The narrator of "Portrait of a Girl in Glass", Tom, works in a warehouse but really wants to be a(n)

• musician.

• writer.

• salesman.

• doctor.

Where does Laura’s mother get the money for Laura to attend business school? ("Portrait of a Girl in Glass")

• from money her husband left her

• from selling magazine subscriptions

• from the money Tom makes on his poems

• from money her husband continues to send

From Laura’s perspective, what is the most promising characteristic about Jim? ("Portrait of a Girl in Glass")

• He drives an old jalopy and is not pretentious or snobby.

• He is tolerant, friendly, and able to make Laura feel at ease with herself.

• He is a solid, steady person with a good family and career ambitions.

• He is a good dancer and enjoys the same odd music that Laura does.

What happened when Ella described the book she was reading to the narrator? (Black Boy)

• She cried.

• He cried.

• He decided to learn to read.

• The boy’s reality changed..

According to the narrator of Black Boy, this was the first experience in his life that elicited

• an attraction to Ella.

• a desire to be a teacher.

• a total emotional response.

• an understanding of his world.

In "The Rockpile," which one of Elizabeth’s children is not Gabriel’s?

• Paul

• John

• Roy

• Delilah