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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 was Olive's maiden name?

2. What does Big Roy make for breakfast on the day that Roy is leaving to go to Atlanta in Part Two: "Prepare a Table for Me"?

3. What happened when Celestial saw a burglar robbing her apartment in Brooklyn when she first met Roy in New York?

4. What magazine does Roy describe Walter frequently reading?

5. Where does Roy run into Davina when he is buying flowers for his mother's grave?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Olive and Big Roy never have more children?

2. What is Roy's attitude when he first encounters Celestial in Atlanta in Part Two: "Prepare a Table for Me"?

3. What does Roy's missing tooth represent symbolically in the novel?

4. What happens when Roy returns home after leaving Davina's in Part Two: "Prepare a Table for Me"?

5. How do Big Roy and Roy "trick" Andre in Part Two: "Prepare a Table for Me"?

6. What does Andre learn upon arriving at Big Roy's house? How does he respond to this news?

7. What happens in the climax of the novel?

8. How does Roy know Davina Hardrick? How do they meet again?

9. Where was Celestial when she met Roy in New York? How does she describe his company?

10. What do the salmon croquettes represent symbolically in the novel?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Celestial's "Dear John" letter to Roy. Why do you think Celestial did not tell Roy face-to-face that she wanted a divorce? Would her character be more empathetic if she had done so? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the characters of Gloria and Olive in the novel. How are these mothers in the story similar? How are they different? Which character is the most empathetic? Why?

Essay Topic 3

Outline and discuss the plot structure of An American Marriage. Where in the novel do the following occur: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and denouement? How does the novel progress chronologically? Does the author make use of flashbacks or flash-forwards?

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