QUESTIONS 1-8
Alice Walker has written books of poetry and
short stories, a biography, and several novels. She is probably best known for
her novel The Color Purple, published
in 1982. The book vividly narrates
the richness and complexity of black people – especially black woman – in
Georgia in the 1920s and 1930s. Although the novel came under bitter attack by
certain critics and readers, it was applauded by others and won both the
American Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. It became a bestseller,
selling over 4 million copies, and it was made into a successful film y noted
director Steven Spielberg. The novel reveals the horror, drudgery, and joy of black life in rural Georgia. It gets much of
its special flavour from its use of the words, rhythm, and grammar of black
English and from its epistolary style. Telling a story through letters was a
narrative structure commonly used by eighteenth-century novelists, but it not
often used in contemporary fiction. Unlike most epistolary novels, which have
the effect of distancing the reader from the events described by the the letter
writer, The Color Purple uses the
letter form to draw the reader into absolute intimacy with the poor,
uneducated, but wonderfully observant Celie, the main character of the novel.
So the reader applauds when Celie, like William Faulkner’s character Dilsey,
does not simply survive, but prevails.
1.
What is the passage mainly about?
a)
A film by Steven Spielberg
b)
The life of Alice Walker
c)
Characters in the novels of William Faulkner
d)
A book by Alice Walker and reactions to it
2.
According to the passage, The Color Purple ia a book of
a)
poetry
b)
criticism
c)
fiction
d)
biography
3.
The word vividly
in line 2 is closest in meaning to
a)
intellectually
b)
graphically
c)
surprisingly
d)
temporarily
4.
Which of the following is closest in meaning
to the word drudgery in line 7?
a)
Hard work
b)
Culture
c)
Uniqueness
d)
Long history
5.
The author mentions eighteenth-century
novelists (line 9) because
a)
their books, like The Color Purple, made use of the epistolary style
b)
The
Color Purple is based on episodes in their books
c)
their novels have a sense of absolute
intimacy
d)
their books, like those of Alice Walker, were
attracted by critics but enjoyed by readers
6.
Why does the author mention Dilsey in line
14?
a)
He is a main character in The Color Purple.
b)
He is similar to Celie in one way.
c)
He is the person on whom Celie was based.
d)
He wrote a book somewhat similar to The Color Purple.
7.
The word prevails
in line 14 is closest in meaning to
a)
changes
b)
resists
c)
triumphs
d)
impresses
8.
The attitude of the author toward The Color Purple is best described as
one of
a)
admiration
b)
alarm
c)
indifference
ANSWER KEY
1.
D
The passage primarily deals with Alice
Walker’s book The Color Purple and
withcritical and popular reaction to the book.
2.
C
The
Color Purple is a novel and thus a work of fiction
3.
B
The word vividly
means graphically, distinctly.
4.
A
Drudgery
means hard work – it is usually low-paying,
uninteresting work as well.
5.
A
Lines 12-14 indicate that eighteenth –
century novelists used the epistalory style; in other words, their books told
their stories through the use of letters. Lines 15-16 say that Alice Walker
also used this style in The Color Purple.
6.
B
The author says that “Celie, like William
Faulkner’s character Dilsey, does not simply survive, but prevails” (lines
18-19). The two characters are alike in that way.
7.
C
The word prevail
means triumph, succeed, win.
8.
A
The author uses a number of ositive terms in
connection with the novel, such as “vividly
narrates” (line 3) and “special flavor” (line 10). The author mmentions
that the novel was attacked by some critics but balances that by saying that it
was praised by others, that it was a bestseller, and that it won some important
literary awards (lines 5-9). All in all, the author’s attitude is admiring.
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