The Way It Was And Is  (MCQs)

By Bill Cosby

“The Way It Was and Is” is an essay by Bill Cosby, in which he reflects on the changes in social values, family dynamics, and the experiences of growing up across different generations. Cosby contrasts the simpler, more disciplined upbringing he and others of his generation experienced with the more permissive and complex environment that children face today. Through humor and nostalgia, he highlights the differences in tastes, parenting styles, the impact of technology, and the evolving nature of childhood. The essay serves as both a fond remembrance of the past and a commentary on the challenges of modern life.

1. I wanted to get out of the house without having my father to use his _________ to damage my brain.
(a) radio (b) music (c) Philco (d) songs

2. My mission was to ___________ past that living room before he caught me.
(a) sneak (b) go (c) reach (d) move

3. For a while, I considered putting a ________ against my window.
(a) bar (b) curtain (c) ladder (d) wall

4. The greatest _________ of top volume was that I couldn’t hear the grownups.
(a) setback (b) advantage (c) disadvantage (d) benefit

5. Duke Ellington, Count Basle, and Jimmie Lunceford were favorite musicians of ___________.
(a) Cosby (b) Cosby’s father (c) Cosby’s daughter (d) None of these

6. I couldn’t ___________ a music appreciation lesson on my father’s old timey music.
(a) afford (b) bear (c) accept (d) stand

7. What is the full name of Bill Cosby?
_____________________________________

8. I couldn’t hear him, but I didn’t have to, for he was ____________ an ancient message.
(a) conveying (b) sending (c) forwarding (d) transferring

9. Music has changed so ___________ since the days when I first heard the wonders of John Coltrane and Bud Powell.
(a) drastically (b) radically (c) completely (d) entirely

10. Armageddon is the name of _______________.
(a) judgment day (b) a city (c) a song (d) a music group

11. This teenager will merely see the ___________ and will probably think that they are part of a publicity campaign.
(a) explosions (b) posters (c) advertisements (d) commercials

12. No matter how he talks, a father cannot sound __________ to his children.
(a) trendy (b) hip (c) hipper (d) stylish

13. He can give high fives until his palms ________.
(a) ache (b) pain (c) break (d) bleed

14. A father will still be a man who lost all his hipness at the age of ____________.
(a) 23 (b) 24 (c) 26 (d) 22

15. The volume of that noise is my own __________.
(a) choice (b) mistake (c) error (d) fault

16. No one made me buy that ______ stereo system for my
decibel-hungry darling.
(a) loud (b) noisy (c) complex (d) composite

17. I even failed to notice the ______ in my daughter’s eyes.
(a) gleam (b) beam (c) shine (d) tears of happiness

18. I had been busy falling into the great American ______.
(a) dream (b) snare (c) trap (d) catch

19. I must confess, however, that all this permissiveness was not entirely_________.
(a) selfless (b) altruistic (c) unselfish (d) without personal gain

20. Surrealistic means ___________.
(a) inappropriate (b) appropriate (c) suitable (d) right

21. Pride and Prejudice is the name of a __________.
(a) Instruction book (b) novel (c) drama (d) poem

22. She put on a record that sounded like a train __________.
(a) Whistle (b) blowing (c) derailment (d) engine

23. I wanted to _________ to her generation, to understand that there might be more to music.
(a) help out (b) extend out (c) stretch out (d) reach out

24. I believe I heard one of them say that I was the _________ father since Abraham.
(a) greatest (b) sweetest (c) hardest (d) toughest

25. Moments later, things began to move that ordinarily had no
___________.
(a) movement (b) legs (c) motion (d) locomotion

26. While the glasses, plates, and utensils danced, my wife listened ______to a deep rhythmic thumping.
(a) intently (b) closely (c) carefully (d) cautiously

27. Permissiveness means __________.
(a) cruelty (b) unkindness (c) leniency (d) mercy

28. You can see that I married above my ________.
(a) status (b) intelligence (c) intelligence quotient (d) level