Americanized: Rebel without a Green Card

Multiple Choice and Long Answer Questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. When Saedi’s parents leave Iran in 1982, what is the primary reason they choose to come to the United States?

A) Saedi’s parents know the United States is a wealthy country.

B) Saedi’s father attended college in the United States and they have relatives there that could host them.

C) Saedi’s mother has a sister in the Bay Area.

D) Saedi begs them to go to the United States, a country she has always wanted to visit.

2. Chapter 3 is titled “Sporting the Frida Kahlo.” What does this refer to?

A) Saedi’s unibrow

B) Saedi’s flower crown

C) Saedi’s upper lip hair

D) Saedi’s braided hair

3. Saedi’s parents are relaxed about her and her sisters’ independence, but they have limits. What is one example of their limits?

A) They do not allow Saedi out of the house after midnight.

B) They insist that Saedi not speak to boys without adult supervision.

C) They require Saedi to socialize with only Iranian teens.

D) They expect Saedi to dress conservatively and not expose cleavage.

4. Saedi’s romantic preoccupation with her high school crush, Evan Parker, prevents her from realizing that his experience with marijuana is different from hers. How is this so?

A) Evan has American citizenship, so his punishment would be less extreme than Saedi’s.

B) Evan’s father is a police officer who would cover for him if he was caught.

C) Evan is male, so he has bigger lungs than Saedi.

D) Evan is Christian, a religion more tolerant of drug experimentation than Islam.

5. What is the definition of the colloquial term “anchor baby”?

A) A child born at sea, usually to refugee parents

B) A child that is of above-average weight, signaling that the parents are wealthy

C) A child that “anchors” the family together because it is born in a time of trouble

D) A child born to a non-citizen mother in a country that has birthright status

6. Saedi has cystic acne as a teenager. What do Saedi’s parents believe causes the condition?

A) Lack of sunshine

B) Improper nutrition

C) Poor hygiene

D) A curse from God

7. Why does Saedi opt to forgo rhinoplasty surgery?

A) Saedi has a blood condition that would make recovery difficult.

B) Saedi decides she wants to embrace her nose as part of her Iranian heritage.

C) Saedi’s family cannot afford it.

D) Saedi’s friends will not understand, and she fears being ostracized. 

8. Sara has a close relationship with two of her older female cousins, who are seen as opposites within the family. Who are these cousins?

A) Nadal (the extrovert) and Missa (the introvert)

B) Nulla (the shallow one) and Mitar (the scholar)

C) Nissa (the loud one) and Mindy (the quiet one)

D) Neda (the goody two-shoes) and Mitra (the rebel)

9. What is the Iranian cultural practice known as taarof in Farsi?

A) Genuflecting before entering your mother’s home

B) Showing politeness by declining something, even if you really want it

C) Folding your clothes in a way so that they have crisp, clean folds

D) Washing dishes used to prepare meat with scalding hot water

10. Saedi’s parents get a divorce, despite having a happy marriage. In the context of Americanized, what larger idea does this decision point to?

A) How American culture is detrimental to romance

B) How Saedi’s parents are willing to make immense sacrifices for their children

C) How Saedi’s grandparents could never understand a marriage based on love

D) How the American legal system does not honor Iranian law

11. Saedi’s maternal grandmother, Maman Soury, had a difficult life. Which of the following is not an example of one of the hardships she endured?

A) Soury became an orphan at seven years old.

B) Soury was forced to be in an arranged marriage.

C) Soury was abused by her foster family.

D) Soury had emphysema.

12. What is the name of Saedi’s parents’ business?

A) Peninsula Luggage

B) Persian Luggage Co.

C) Iranian Baggage Co.

D) Saedi’s Slippers

13. Immigration officials record an incorrect birthday for Saedi on her green card of September 21, 1982. What is this date, if not her birthday?

A) Her mother’s birthday

B) Her father’s birthday

C) The day her family arrived in the United States

D) The day she applied for her green card

14. Saedi’s mother gives her a very useful piece of advice in her second year of college regarding Saedi’s relationship with Slash. What is the advice?

A) If you can’t love the one you want, love the one you’re with.

B) Beauty is only skin deep.

C) You should not waste time on people who do not truly love you.

D) You cannot love anyone else until you learn to love yourself.

15. What is Saedi doing when she officially becomes an American citizen instead of savoring the moment?

A) Scrolling Instagram

B) Texting Slash

C) Napping

D) Reading TV scripts for work

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. Saedi’s appearance—particularly her eyebrows—causes her a great deal of stress. In a broader context of Persian beauty norms and expectations, how is this so?

2. Why does Saedi refer to herself as a “spork”?