ENG 100 Final, Fall 2007

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT INTENSIVE ENGLISH/English 100 FINAL EXAM / Reading component Fall 2007-08 NAME___________________________ ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS BASED ON THE ATTACHED PASSAGE, “Superman and Me”. VOCABULARY QUESTIONS: Select the meaning of the following italicized words as they appear in the passage. Circle the letter of the correct answer: 1. My father, who was one of the few Indians who went to a Catholic school on purpose, was an avid reader of westerns, spy thrillers, murder mysteries…and anything else he could find. a. rude and impatient b. easily upset c. having keen interest and enthusiasm d. professional 2. If he’d been anything but an Indian boy living on a reservation, he might have been called a prodigy. a. person with exceptional talents b. person with musical abilities c. person with athletic ability d. person with artistic talent 3. Most lived up to those expectations inside the classroom, but subverted them on the outside. a. ruined b. copied c. began d. repeated 4.They submissively ducked their heads when confronted by a non-Indian adult, but would slug it out with the Indian bully who was ten years older. a. proudly b. slowly c. giving in to the will and authority of another d. done in a brave manner NAME_______________________________ COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS A. Complete the following sentences correctly. Circle the letter of the correct answer: 1. Alexie decided to love books as a child because a. he wanted to read about Superman. b. his father owned a bookstore. c. he loved his father. d. he had a teacher who encouraged him to read. 2. As a boy, Alexie realized that paragraphs were like a. common experiences that link us. b. a Native American reservation. c. a Catholic school. d. fences that held words. 3. Because Alexie was a “smart Indian”, he was a. feared and ridiculed, and he fought daily with his classmates. b. admired by both Indians and non-Indians. c. allowed to skip a grade. d. reluctant to show how much he knew. B. Answer the following questions in 3-5 lines each. 1. What is the main idea in this passage? 2. What does the author mean by saying: “I was trying to save my life”? Where else in the passage does he mention the “saving” of “lives”? Explain why he mentions it again. 3. Is the author confident that he can pass on his love of reading to other students? Explain your answer. 4. What have you learned about the writer through his experiences and his ambitions? In your answer describe some of his personal qualities, supported by examples from the passage.