Comprehension and Analysis: "The Party" by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Read the attached story "The Party" by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Answer the following questions to show your understanding of the text. There are five multiple-choice questions and two open-ended questions. Be sure to answer each question completely and use evidence from the text when needed.
Group 1
Answer the following multiple-choice questions by selecting the best answer.
Source 1.1
The Party By Pam Muñoz Ryan 2001 Pam Muñoz Ryan, a Mexican American author, has written over forty books for young people. She worked with and around young people for many years before starting a family of her own. A young girl experiences not being invited to a party hosted by a popular girl in her school.
[1] It didn’t take me long to figure out that I wasn’t invited to the party. I got off the bus and saw my friends huddled under the tree where we all stood every morning before the first bell. There were six of us: Theresa, Becky, Barbara, Carol, Kim, and me. I can’t even say that we were close friends. We had come from different elementary schools and never fit with the predictable middle school jocks, pops, or nerds. We were flotsam and jetsam that washed under a tree in front of the library and became an entity by default and by simply standing together.
The circle seemed tighter as I approached; the flittering of small white envelopes being hastily stuffed into backpacks and binders gave it away. I knew as well as the entire universe that Bridget’s party was this weekend. Bridget was one of the pops, the popular ones and the antithesis of me. She was thin and wore clothes that looked like they came straight from the pages of magazines. She had that hair — red, and cut into a perfect page, smoothed into a bowl around her face, and every shade of shoes to match even her wildest outfits. She had a select group of followers who squealed and hugged each other between every class, as if they hadn’t seen each other in years. We all wanted to be like her or them and being invited to her party meant elevation in the school pecking order. To not be invited meant standing in stagnant water.
My stomach churned, and I hoped that Bridget was still holding an envelope with my name on it to be delivered later. But my friends’ shuffling feet and furtive glances guaranteed my fate. Their too-eager hellos told me that everyone already knew who was invited and who wasn’t.
“Hi,” I responded, but that one word already sounded hollow with disappointment.
Question 1a
What is the main reason the narrator feels left out at the beginning of the story?
Question 1b
How does the narrator describe her group of friends?
Question 1c
What does the word "antithesis" mean as used in the text?
Question 1d
How does the narrator feel when Bridget finally offers her an invitation to the party?
Question 1e
What is the main theme of the story?
Group 2
Answer the following open-ended questions. Use evidence from the text to support your answers.
Question 2a
How does the narrator’s attitude toward Bridget change throughout the story? Use details from the text to explain your answer.
Question 2b
Describe a time in the story when the narrator feels conflicted about what to do. What does this reveal about her character?
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