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

Short Answer Questions

1. The following headline ran in what paper? "HER OUTSIDE PREOCCUPATION CAN LEAVE HIM ISOLATED AT TIME OF MORE LEISURE"

2. What does the father in the poem referenced in Chapter 14 finally conclude?

3. Viorst contends that our unconscious sexual thoughts toward friends are masked as what?

4. Men pursue ______________; women yearn for _______________.

5. Viorst quotes this book, written by Kathrin Perutz, in Chapter 13.

Short Essay Questions

1. According to Freud, is it unusual to have sexual feelings toward friends? How does this impact our friendships with the opposite sex?

2. What is the fundamental tension in all man-woman marriages?

3. What are some of the different types of loss and mourning discussed in Chapter 16? Do we experience them all in the same way?

4. What impact does middle age tend to have on a marriage?

5. According to the book, why are friends so important?

6. According to Chapter 17, what redefines us throughout our lives?

7. Other than a parent, what other things impact who a child becomes?

8. In thinking about losses as a lifelong theme, name some of the juxtapositions that Viorst discusses in Chapter 20.

9. Name the five stages of dying described by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. Briefly describe each stage.

10. What are a few of the difficulties of a marriage relationship mentioned in Chapter 13?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the proposal by the author that extended separation from a mother can result in permanent emotional damage in light of our societal structure. If, as the author proposes, our entire societal structure is called into question by a child's absolute need for his or her mother, in what ways would you go about restructuring our society? What changes would you make? How involved should government be? What role would churches and other community organizations play in shifting the priorities of an entire society?

Essay Topic 2

Using support from the book, explore the poem by Maxine Kumin entitled, "After Love." How does this poem support the author's stance that we all seek a substitute for the loss of oneness with our mother through other means? How does a moment like the one the poet describes fulfill our need, though temporarily, to feel oneness again?

Essay Topic 3

Compare and contrast the perception that our image of our mother as an all-loving, all-encompassing being with the reality of what most mother's really must be. Why do we all seem to have such idealistic perceptions of mothers as such selfless, loving beings? Are these perceptions based in some reality or just fantasy? How do these perceptions play out and affect who we become, our expectations for love in other relationships, etc.?

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