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Advanced American Studies
Throckmorton/Bonta/Sinopoli/Richardson
Total Score:__________/100 points
Name:_________________________________
Date:___________________
Unit Test: 1920s, The Great Gatsby, and the Harlem Renaissance
Advanced American Studies
Matching (1 point each):
Match the following characters to their descriptions. Some of the characters may be used more than
once.
____1. social climber who lives on West Egg and is eternally hopeful
____2. comes from old money and is determined to maintain social
power over others whom this character views as inferior
A. Daisy Buchanan
B. George Wilson
____3. is determined to never judge another person
C. Jay Gatsby
____4. dishonest sports champion and very bad driver
D. Jordan Baker
____5. comes from old money, is a die-hard romantic, and always
dresses in white
____6. gambler who fixed the 1919 World Series and wears human
molars as cuff-links
E. Meyer Wolfsheim
F. Myrtle Wilson
G. Nick Carraway
____ 7. lives in West Egg to work in the bond business
H. Tom Buchanan
____ 8. attracted to material things and gets punched in the nose
____ 9. thinks the best thing a girl can be is a “beautiful little fool”
____10. lives in the Valley of Ashes and runs a gas station
Multiple Choice (2 points each):
Write the letter of the best answer choice in the space provides for each of the following questions.
11. The definition “an object used to represent other things and ideas” refers to which of the
following?
A. allusion
B. simile
C. symbolism
D. theme
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Answer the next question using the following quotation.
“I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s
dock. He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that
he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him…”
12. What is the best meaning of the quotation?
A. Daisy leaves Gatsby forever.
B. Gatsby has already lived his dream.
C. Gatsby earned all of his money for nothing.
D. Gatsby’s dream was impossible to achieve.
13. In The Great Gatsby, the Valley of Ashes best symbolizes which of the following?
A. the disillusionment of Americans after WWI
B. the power of the rich living in East Egg
C. dreary people like George Wilson
D. It does not symbolize anything.
14. The definition “the attitude a narrator or speaker takes toward the reader, a subject, or a
character” refers to which of the following?
A. figurative language
B. mood
C. symbolism
D. tone
Answer the next two questions using the third stanza from the poem “Strange Fruit.”
“Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck,
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,
For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop,
Here is a strange and bitter crop.”
15. Which term best describes the tone in the poem?
A. angry
B. hungry
C. nostalgic
D. sorrowful
16. In the poem, the fruit best symbolizes which of the following?
A. humankind’s moral decay
B. lynched African Americans
C. tart apples from an orchard
D. failing farms during the Great Depression
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17. The Great Gatsby best embodies which of the following characteristics of the 1920s?
A. fear of outsiders
B. women rallying for suffrage
C. the decadence of the newly rich
D. the backwardness of small towns
Answer the next question using the following passage.
“Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her;
If you can bounce high, bounce for her too,
Till she cry ‘Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover,
I must have you!”
18. In the passage, what does the gold hat best symbolize?
A. blond hair
B. happiness
C. stylish clothing
D. wealth
19. In The Great Gatsby, the girls at Gatsby’s parties are most likely examples of which of the
following?
A. the bee’s knees
B. flappers
C. floozies
D. suffragettes
20. Which is the best paraphrase of the concept of “The New Negro?”
A. African Americans should return home to their roots in Africa.
B. African Americans can and should overcome historical racial and social impediments.
C. African Americans should use violent means to achieve social and political equality.
D. African Americans should assert their cultural identity through the introduction of
African traditions and dress.
21. In writing about drinking, gambling, and illicit relationships in The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald is
most likely offering commentary on which of the following?
A. gender dynamics in the 1920s
B. race relations in the 1920s
C. the American dream in the 1920s
D. the decline of morality in the 1920s
Short Answer (5 points each):
Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Be thorough in your response, and provide
supporting details. Use specific terminology we discussed in class.
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1. Compare East Egg and West Egg. What are their characteristics? How are they alike? How are
they different?
2. Explain in your own words the significance of money in the consumer society represented in
any of the texts (print or non-print) we have studied from the 1920s.
3. Describe gender roles and the status of women in the 1920s. Your answer may include topics
such as rights, dress, and behavior and reference any of the texts (print and non-print) we have
studied from the 1920s.
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