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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. Who first discovers the truth about Charles Bon's past?

2. How does Rosa acquire what she needs to make Judith's wedding gift?

3. From whom does Sutpen purchase his land?

4. Where is Quentin while he's listening to the story about Thomas Sutpen?

5. In what year does the novel begin?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Judith's fiance die?

2. How does Rosa depict Judith's reaction to Charles Bon's murder?

3. In Chapter 8, what is meant by the fact that Quentin and Shreve feel as though there are four people in their dorm room?

4. In Chapter 4, Jason Compson says that "...it must have been Henry who seduced Judith, not Bon..." What does this mean?

5. Explain why Sutpen chooses Ellen Coldfield to be his bride over all the other women in Jefferson.

6. Why were all the charges against Sutpen dropped after his bond was signed by Mr. Coldfield and General Compson?

7. At the end of Chapter 5, Rosa says there is "something in that house," referring to Sutpen's Hundred. Quentin responds, "In that house? It's Clytie..." What can the reader infer from this exchange?

8. Why are there several different versions of how Charles Bon came to find out about his father in Chapter 8?

9. What is Quentin's answer to Shreve's final question of the novel?

10. What is Quentin distracted by at the end of Chapter 5 that causes him to stop paying attention to the story?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss how Faulkner uses characters' clothing to characterize them throughout the novel. Pick a specific character and comment on the evolution of that character's dress throughout the novel and what that evolution means about that character.

Essay Topic 2

Who is the protagonist of _Absalom, Absalom_? Who is the antagonist? Give reasons from the text to support your claims.

Essay Topic 3

What is the role of blood in this novel, in terms of heritage? How does blood dictate what the characters can and cannot do and can and cannot be?

(see the answer keys)

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