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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 does Lyman originally think of Shelley?

2. What is Susan's first clue that her marriage may not be everything she has dreamed?

3. What does Oliver tell Susan about his manager at the mine?

4. What is a good description of the Ward home?

5. What sad news does Augusta's first letter to Susan in New Almaden include?

Short Essay Questions

1. What attracted Susan to Oliver?

2. How does Susan present her New Almaden life to Augusta in their correspondence?

3. How is Susan's transformation into a western woman exemplified in this chapter?

4. What characteristics are further brought out once Susan joins her husband in New Almaden?

5. What is Susan's state of mind in this chapter?

6. Why are Shelley's problems critical to the story?

7. Why doesn't Susan want Oliver to accept the job in Bolivia?

8. What does Lyman hope to accomplish during the writing about his grandparents' lives?

9. How is Susan's embarrassment with her husband's social abilities highlighted in this chapter?

10. When Augusta disapproves of Oliver, what characteristics in Susan are brought to light?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What are Susan and Oliver's basic complaints about each other? How do they try to resolve it, if at all? Give examples of her anger towards him, and his towards her.

Essay Topic 2

Why is Lyman intent on staying independent?

Essay Topic 3

What role did Shelley Rasmussen play in the plot movement in this novel? How did she compare with Susan Ward in Lyman's eyes? How did the author use Shelley to explain Lyman's character?

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