Humanities › English Reading Quiz on 'How It Feels to Be Colored Me' by Zora Neale Hurston Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) at a book fair in New York City. PhotoQuest/Getty Images English English Grammar An Introduction to Punctuation Writing By Richard Nordquist Richard Nordquist English and Rhetoric Professor Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester B.A., English, State University of New York Dr. Richard Nordquist is professor emeritus of rhetoric and English at Georgia Southern University and the author of several university-level grammar and composition textbooks. Learn about our Editorial Process Published on March 13, 2019 Author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston is best known today for her novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, published in 1937. A decade earlier she wrote "How It Feels to Be Colored Me"—an essay that might be characterized as both a letter of introduction and a personal declaration of independence.After reading Hurston's essay, check your comprehension with this multiple-choice quiz. 1. Hurston reports that she "lived in the little town of Eatonville, Florida" until she was what age? 5 years old 7 years old 10 years old 13 years old Correct Wrong 2. According to Hurston, white people passed through Eatonville on their way to or from which large Florida city? Miami Orlando Tampa Jacksonville Correct Wrong 3. Hurston recalls that, when greeting travelers as a child, her "favorite place" to perch was: The gatepost The horse The automobile The water barrel Correct Wrong 4. Hurston interprets her move from Eatonville to Jacksonville as a personal transformation from "Zora of Orange County" to: "Miss Hurston of the Atlantic Coast" "Zora Neale of Duval County" "An African American leader" "A little colored girl" Correct Wrong 5. Hurston employs a metaphor to demonstrate that she does not accept self-pity or identify with the role of the victim. What is that metaphor? "I am queen of the hill." "I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife." "I am the leader of the pack." "I am searching for treasure and digging for gold." Correct Wrong 6. Hurston employs a metaphor to evaluate the effects of slavery ("sixty years in the past") on her life. What is that metaphor? "One chapter has closed; another has begun." "That dark road has led to a bright highway." "The operation was successful, and the patient is doing well." "Sobbing ghosts haunt me wherever I go." Correct Wrong 7. Hurston uses the metaphor of a wild animal that "rears on its hind legs and attacks the tonal veil... clawing it until it breaks through to the jungle beyond." What is she describing with this metaphor? A jazz orchestra The street noise of New York City The race riots of the 1920s Her overwhelming anger Correct Wrong 8. According to Hurston, how does her white male companion respond to the music that has affected her so deeply? He weeps out of sorrow and joy He says, "Good music they have here." He storms out of the club. He talks about stock options, oblivious to the music. Correct Wrong 9. Hurston refers to Peggy Hopkins Joyce, an American actress known for her lavish lifestyle and scandalous affairs. In comparison to Joyce, Hurston calls herself: A respectable woman The cosmic Zora . . . the eternal feminine A much more talented actress The most invisible woman in the world Correct Wrong 10. In the final paragraph of the essay, Hurston compares herself to: The Great Stuffer of Bags The ringmaster at a circus An actor in a play A brown bag of miscellany Correct Wrong Reading Quiz on 'How It Feels to Be Colored Me' by Zora Neale Hurston You got: % Correct. Nice try! Improve your score by reviewing "How It Feels to Be Colored Me." Share Your Results Reading Quiz on 'How It Feels to Be Colored Me' by Zora Neale Hurston You got: % Correct. Great work! Want to improve your score? Review "How It Feels to Be Colored Me." Share Your Results