View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Angus think Cam made a mistake in charging Jamie with murder?

2. After all her husband's possessions are sold, what does the woman hand out as people pass her yard?

3. Who does Allie visit first in Jamie's hometown?

4. Who is Pauline Cioffi?

5. As the novel begins, the woman puts all her husband's possessions from her house in ______ on the front lawn.

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Cam think Mia smells like?

2. What does Mia contemplate doing as she looks through Cam and Allie's medicine cabinet?

3. What reaction does Cam have to Mia the first time he sees her in Allie's shop?

4. What is Jamie's occupation and how did it involve Maggie?

5. What is Jamie's theory about marriage?

6. What is the library lecture given by Verona MacBean about?

7. What in particular concerns Allie about her relationship with Cam?

8. What kind of wife is Allie to Cam?

9. Why is euthanasia not a good defense for Jamie's trial?

10. What does Allie learn about Maggie's condition from her doctor?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Who is the true protagonist of Mercy, Jamie or Cam? Is there a hero in the novel? Fully explain your answer with references to both plot and themes.

Essay Topic 2

Why does Picoult begin the novel with these lines from a William Carlos Williams poem: "What power has love but forgiveness?/ In other words/ by its intervention/ what has been done/ can be undone./ What good is it otherwise?" What is the significance of these words to the plot and themes of Mercy? What is the difference between forgiveness and mercy?

Essay Topic 3

How is the stained glass panel used as a symbol throughout the novel? Explain fully what it represents from the prologue to the end of the story.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 624 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample