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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 is the author of "Afterward"?

2. To what do Mary and Ned attribute the great beauty they see in England?

3. When Mary discards her first two ideas about what is bothering Ned, she comes to a conclusion that upsets her. What is it?

4. What does Ned's motive seem to be when he first brings up the subject of whether the house has a ghost?

5. On page 84, the reader learns about the "prodigious windfall" that Ned and Mary experienced. Where did this "prodigious windfall" come from?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens with the mysterious visitor on the day that Ned disappears?

2. What strange conclusion does Mary come to about the relationship of the ghost to the house, Lyng?

3. After she finds out that he has gone out with the mysterious man and not yet returned, why is Mary immediately alarmed?

4. In the beginning of section "IV," how much time has elapsed since Ned's disappearance, and what has been happening in that time?

5. What is the name of Ned's book, and what is the thematic significance of this title?

6. How does the narrator describe the life that the Boynes had in America?

7. What draws the Boynes to England?

8. In the narrative present at the beginning of the story, where is Mary and what is she doing?

9. What does Ned tell Mary about the Blue Star lawsuit?

10. What does Mary remember happening earlier in the day in October when she and Ned first climbed Meldon Steep?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that examines the issue of unearned privilege in "Afterward." How far does the story go in its critique of Mary and Ned's lifestyle? Might it have gone further? You may choose to also use evidence about Wharton's own life, depending on the scope of your thesis; if you do so, be sure to cite your sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

No one in the story is explicit about what happened during the Blue Star Mine scandal, although Parvis does explain in general terms how Ned cheated Bob Elwell. Write an essay that takes and defends a position about why this is. What does the story gain by being vague about the exact sequence of events, and what would it lose by taking up more space explaining what happened? Offer specific textual evidence to support your claims.

Essay Topic 3

Mary looks across the property at her home and sees it "drenched in the pale gold moisture of the air" (89). This kind of diction clearly sends a message about Lyng, and Wharton's work is full of examples of this sort of thoughtful language. Choose a single aspect of the story--a person, a setting, an event, etc.--and analyze how Wharton's word choices contribute to the reader's understanding. Offer quoted textual examples to support your claims.

(see the answer keys)

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