British Literature
English IV
Name: ___________________
Date: ___________________
Period: __________________
Araby Exam
1. Based on the description provided by James Joyce, what is “Araby?”
A. A marketplace that features goods from Eastern cultures.
B. A festival that introduces new cultures and customs to poor towns.
C. A big party for single people to get together and meet new people.
D. A marketplace that features goods from Western cultures.
2. Mangan’s sister comes out to the front steps to:
A. find out how dark it is outside
B. see what game the boys are playing
C. have a conversation with the narrator
D. call her brother to come home for tea
3. The narrator says his eyes are often full of tears and his heart floods when he thinks of Mangan’s sister.
What do you learn about the narrator from these first-person point of view comments?
A. Mangan’s sister has hurt the narrator’s feelings.
B. The young narrator is in love for the first time.
C. The narrator fears he will miss going to Araby.
D. Mangan’s sister refuses to speak to the narrator.
4. What do the descriptive details in this excerpt reveal about the narrator? “The light from the lamp
opposite our door caught the white curve of her neck, lit up her hair that rested there and, falling, lit up the
hand upon the railing.”
A. He finds Mangan’s sister very beautiful.
B. He notices Mangan’s sister for the first time.
C. He hopes Mangan’s sister is flirting with him.
D. He thinks Mangan’s sister looks strange at night.
5. When waiting to go to “Araby,” the narrator is stuck at home with
A. his aunt and Mrs. Mercer
B. a few of his friends
C. his aunt and uncle
D. a visiting priest
6. What is happening at “Araby” when the narrator arrives?
A. Singers are asking people for pennies.
B. Customers are drinking tea in the café.
C. People are shopping for porcelain vases.
D. Most of the bazaar is already closed and dark.
7. Analyze the excerpt below. What do the descriptive details reveal about the narrator? “But my body
was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires.”
A. Knowing Mangan’s sister makes the narrator a better person.
B. The narrator longs to sing a love song to Mangan’s sister.
C. Mangan’s sister is as beautiful as the loveliest music.
D. His feelings for Mangan’s sister control the narrator.
8. What does the first-person point of view help convey when the narrator describes walking through the
dark, empty bazaar?
A. what a large, grown-up place the bazaar is
B. his desire to have more coins in his pocket
C. how vain and hopeless Araby makes him feel
D. his wish that Mangan’s sister were with him
9. Which are the 3 major themes in “Araby”?
A. obsession, love, lust
B. infatuation, obsession, religion
C. obsession, loss of innocence, disillusionment
D. obsession, loss of innocence, epiphany
10. What kind of school did the boy attend?
A. Christian Brothers’ School
B. He did not attend school
C. a university
D. North Richmond Street
11. In “Araby,” the garden in the narrator’s house is significant because:
A. It serves as an allusion to the Garden of Eden
B. It foreshadows the narrator’s loss of innocence
C. the boy liked to watch the girl from the apple tres
D. Both A and B
12. What does incessant mean?
A. to make an impression
B. too many to count
C. continuing without stopping
D. unpleasant to consider
13. What does garrulous mean?
A. doing too many things at once without thinking
B. costing a lot of money although it is cheaply made
C. a rough tribe
D. talking too much, especially about unimportant things
14. What does chafed mean?
A. to wear or abrade by rubbing
B. to make an impression
C. continuing without stopping
D. rude and brief
15. What does gauntlet mean?
A. a rough area
B. to make an impression
C. continuing without stopping
D. rude and brief
16. What does blind mean in “Araby”?
A. rude and brief
B. a rough area
C. dead end
D. not being able to see
17. What does impinge mean?
A. to request an explanation
B. to make an impression
C. continuing without stopping
D. rude and brief
18. What does epiphany mean?
A. an obsession
B. a revelation
C. an infatuation
D. rude and brief
19. What does misgave mean?
A. a revelation
B. dead end
C. to forgive
D. to give doubt
20. What does curtly mean?
A. dead end
B. to make an impression
C. to find a cure
D. rude and brief
21. List and discuss the 3 major themes of Araby.
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22. Was the boy obsessed or infatuated? Explain.
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23. Do you think the narrator was hopeful or defeated at the end of the story? Explain.
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24. What is the boy’s moment of epiphany and what does he come to realize about himself? Explain.
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25. How does the boy feel at the end of the story? Why does he accuse himself of vanity? Explain.
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