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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 do the little girls from Elaine's memories remind her of?

2. What job does Elaine give up?

3. Where does Elaine's family go for vacation?

4. What did Elaine think of Jon's dirty mattress when they were first dating?

5. Where do the girls stare at Elaine from as she walks home from school?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Cordelia in the rest home?

2. What does Carol tell all the other children about Elaine?

3. Describe how Stephen dies.

4. At the art retrospective, what does Elaine wish she could ask Cordelia?

5. How does Elaine react to moving to Toronto when she is eight?

6. How does Elaine feel when she visits the new school?

7. Why doesn't Charna want Elaine to be in the gallery when people begin arriving for the art retrospective?

8. Why do Jon and Elaine get married?

9. How are the paintings at the gallery organized when Elaine arrives at the art retrospective?

10. How does Elaine react to the other girls' bullying?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The characters who hurt each other in the novel are those who are supposed to love each other. Discuss love, friendship, and betrayal in the novel.

1) Do Elaine and Cordelia ever have a friendship? Do they love each other? Why do they hurt each other?

2) Compare Elaine's relationships with Jon, Ben, Stephen, her parents, Cordelia, and Josef. What does love mean for Elaine in these different relationships?

Essay Topic 2

Describe the culture of women in the book.

1) How does Elaine perceive other girls when she is young, before she has girl friends, and what is her perception of her first girl friends?

2) How does the culture of women in the book differ from the culture of men? How is Elaine a different person with women than with men?

3) How does Elaine interact with women as an adult, and how does this relate to her early experiences with other girls?

Essay Topic 3

Elaine often feels herself growing stronger or weaker, empowered or powerless. Discuss the importance of power in the novel.

1) When is Elaine powerful, and when does she feel powerless? What gives Elaine power in the course of the novel?

2) How do Elaine and Cordelia use power over others?

3) What power does Elaine's art give her? Does Elaine recognize the power of her art?

(see the answer keys)

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