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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who faints from hunger after the odor of food permeates the coach in the story?
(a) The old nun.
(b) Madame Carre-Lamadon.
(c) Comtesse de Breville
(d) Boule de Suif.

2. What is the name of the card game the men propose to play after dinner the first day in Totes?
(a) Eleusis.
(b) Euchre.
(c) Eighty-three.
(d) Escarte.

3. What does Cornudet have that he offers to his neighbors in the coach on the way to Totes?
(a) A knuckle of ham.
(b) A crust of bread.
(c) A bottle of rum.
(d) A carafe of coffee.

4. When the coach lights the lantern, what hovers over the sweating flanks of the horses and roadside?
(a) A dense fog.
(b) A shadow of moonlight.
(c) A light mist.
(d) A cloud of vapor.

5. Why do the coach passengers resemble "obese priests in their cassocks" when they meet for their seats?
(a) Because they are devout Christians.
(b) Because they are disguised as priests.
(c) Because they are swathed in heavy winter wraps.
(d) Because they are very fat.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the coach floor covered with as the passengers take their seats?

2. Why does Boule de Suif refuse Cornudet their first night in Totes?

3. What passengers are the last to alight from the coach when they arrive in Totes?

4. Who does Madame Follenvie address herself to while the passengers dine during their first supper in Totes?

5. What does the rumor about the Prussians concern in the beginning of "Boule de Suif"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do the passengers begin to call Boule de Suif in order to persuade her to sleep with the Prussian officer?

2. How does Madame Carre-Lamadon describe the Prussian officer and what does it signify?

3. Describe the setting in the opening scene of "Boule de Suif" and its significance.

4. How do the other female passengers respond to Boule de Suif's political views in the coach from Rouen and why?

5. What happens once the Prussians arrive in Rouen and why is it significant?

6. How do the women converse about Boule de Suif and the Prussian and what does it signify?

7. How does Boule de Suif appear when she arrives at the coach the morning after she sleeps with the Prussian officer and how is it significant?

8. Who is Boule de Suif and what is the metaphor Maupassant uses to describe her appearance.

9. Why does Loiseau take off his watch chain in the kitchen as the coach passengers discuss the Prussian officer's motives, and how is it significant?

10. What is the passengers' attitude toward Boule de Suif on their second day of detention in Totes?

(see the answer keys)

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