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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. What day does Ada's husband die?

2. Who is visiting Villa Venus, causing it to be overrun with police?

3. Who does the woman on the boat mistake Van for?

4. Who does Van have read and forward his letter to Ada about Lucette's death?

5. On what deck of the boat does Van initially find Lucette?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Marina's last days, why is Van planning a trip to America?

2. What does Lucette say about Ada's hands?

3. How does Van respond to an invitation to dine at the Captain's table?

4. What does Van give to Lucette in exchange for the name of the man who wants to marry her?

5. What is Cordula's conversation like?

6. Why does Van think he is sterile?

7. How does Van respond to Ada's arrival?

8. How does Van characterize to Greg his relationship with Ada?

9. What metaphor does Van use for trying to understand time?

10. What were the reviews of Van's first book like?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the mental and physical worlds in the novel.

1) How does the mental world of Van's intellectual investigations and books relate to the physical world around him?

2) How does Van's mental relationship with Ada relate to their physical relationship?

3) How does the balance of mind and body, mental and physical change over time, as Van ages?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the structure of the novel.

1) What role does each of the five parts of the novel play? How does each represent a specific period in the relationship of Ada and Van, and how are those periods different from each other?

2) Why is the first book the longest? Why is the fourth book a single chapter?

3) In what ways is the structure chronological? How and why does it break out of chronological order?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the importance of Ardis Hall in the novel.

1) What meanings and associations does Ardis Hall have for Van and Ada?

2) Why does Van never go back and live at Ardis Hall when he is older? Why does Lucette suggest they go to Ardis Hall?

3) By the end of the novel, Ardis Hall mainly exists in memory for the main characters. How is the memory different from the reality?

(see the answer keys)

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