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82 pages 2 hours read

Jean Toomer

Cane

Jean ToomerFiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1923

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During Reading

Reading Questions & Paired Texts

Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

PART 1: CHAPTERS 1-5

Reading Check

1. What grows in the South, despite the boll-weevils and desolate climate?

2. How does Becky die?

3. At what stage in life is the woman discussed in the poem “Face”?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. Compare men’s perceptions of Karintha pre- and post-adolescence. What moment in her life causes the most change in how men perceive her?

2. Analyze the poem “Reapers.” Toward what does the continued action point?

3. How is Becky perceived by her community? How does this perception shape the community’s discussion of her death?

Paired Resource

There Is Power in Looking: The Oppositional Gaze

  • This article from the University of Washington explores the “double oppression” of Black “female spectators” in literature.
  • This information connects with the theme Modernism and Black Women’s Bodies.
  • Based on this resource, how are women subject to the “male gaze” within the novel? Explain.

PART 1: CHAPTERS 6-10

Reading Check

1. To what does the narrator compare Carma’s strength?

2. Using the format of ABCD, what is the rhyme scheme of “Song of the Sun”?

3.

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