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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. In Robbie's office, there is a photograph of __________ celebrating their honeymoon.

2. What is the problem, Briony finally decides, in regards to the play she wants to stage?

3. What does Emily want to turn the roast into for Leon's arrival?

4. What breaks when Robbie and Cecilia argue over who will help with filling it?

5. To what age does Robbie's imagination take him as he is thinking about his and Cecilia's future?

Short Essay Questions

1. What causes Cecilia to stop fixing the vase?

2. What does Briony imagine is happening when she sees Robbie and Cecilia are out at the fountain?

3. Why is Briony relieved when everyone leaves her alone in the nursery?

4. What does Cecilia's father disapprove of which she does in spite of this disapproval?

5. Why does Cecilia not go to the kitchen to fill up the vase with water?

6. What is wrong with the play, according to Briony?

7. What is Briony's reaction to her big brother when he approaches her?

8. What does Cecilia try to do in order to recover the appearance of the vase?

9. What does Emily think will prevent Cecilia from finding a husband?

10. What does Briony do when she has finished a piece of writing?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Violence also plays a major role in this story, causing characters to be misconstrued and causing characters to create their own explanations.

Part 1: Describe the scene between Robbie and Cecilia which is seen as violence in Briony's eyes.

Part 2: Why do you think Briony mistook this scene for violence?

Part 3: What does the assumption of violence or negative actions (as in when Lola agrees with Briony's assessment of the letter) say about these characters? Why are they so sensitive to the possibility of violence?

Essay Topic 2

The vase becomes a symbolic item in this story, with its glorious return to the family, then its breaking, repair, and then eventual demise.

Part 1: What is the story of the vase's return to the family?

Part 2: How does the vase become broken in the first place?

Part 3: What does the breaking and repair of the case seem to symbolize in relation to the relationship between Robbie and Cecilia?

Essay Topic 3

The idea of atonement is not a surprising theme, given the title of the book.

Part 1: Who is the character that decides he/she needs to atone for his/her sins?

Part 2: Why does this character feel the way he/she does?

Part 3: Do you think this character is genuine in his/her desire to make things right? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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