Black Boy Study Guide

1. Identify the speaker of the following passage: "I never heard a sassier black imp than you in all my life."

• Mr. Olin
• Mr. Crane
• Uncle Clark
• Uncle Tom

2. Which of the following is an example of the theme of isolation:

• Richard is afraid to tell his boss at the café that Tillie is spitting in the food.
• To Richard, Granny looks like she is as white as any other white person.
• The South Side section communists throw Richard out of the May Day Parade.
• Leon leaves with Aunt Maggie for the North when Ella becomes extremely ill.

3. Which of the following titles was Richard's first attempt at writing?

• The Voodoo of Hell's Half-Acre
• Native Son
• Riders of the Purple Sage
• Hell Hath No Fury

4. Richard's grandfather is embittered and disappointed because:

• He knows that he is terminally ill and about to pass away without having accomplished his goal of becoming a writer.
• He never received his pension for his service in the military.
• He has no properly raised grandchildren who are proud of their heritage.
• His life insurance policy was never awarded to him because of a false policy.

5. What aspect o the Communist speakers in Washington Park baffles and angers Richard?

• Their deliberately careless personal appearance.
• The fact that they preached falsely and ignorantly.
• Their lack of courage and wisdom.
• The Communists had promised to bring Richard into their literary circle.

6. Why does Richard begin to bootleg liquor in the hotel?

• To come into close proximity of the white prostitutes.
• To amass a substantial amount of money.
• To escape the Jim Crow laws by not obeying the laws set by whites.
• To have the satisfaction of walking past a white policeman, knowing he was breaking the law.

7. Complete the following passage regarding the white waitresses at the Chicago café where Richard works: "I did not feel any __________ for the girls, nor any _________. For the most part I was silent with them, though I knew that I had a firmer grasp of

• Admiration; disgust
• Love; hate
• Pain; envy
• Admiration; hate

8. What is the title of Comrade Young's document of the history of the human race?

• The Voodoo of Hell's Half-Acre
• A Marxist View of Man's Evolution
• The Human Race: Emotions and Politics
• A Pictorial Record of Man's Economic Process

9. Identify the speaker of the following passage: "I'm not trying to fight you with my writing. I've no political ambitions. I'm not trying to hurt or help any particular comrade."

• Buddy Nealson
• Comrade Young
• Ross
• Richard Wright

10. Why does Richard want to be a Communist?

• Richard's lifestyle is suited by the non-materialistic ideas of the Communist Party.
• He feels that Communism promotes a sense of unity among the black community, which he has never felt before.
• He feels that Communism has a strong potential as an ideology that will help overcome ignorance.
• He wants to shape people's feelings and awaken their cultural and emotional selves.