View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do Elaine's friends say she's done wrong that makes them not speak to her at the Christmas parade?

2. Who does Elaine see on the escalator after she has her drink?

3. What does the narrator say she's not ready to give up, even at fifty, though it's a nuisance?

4. How old does Elaine turn soon after the incident with the hole?

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

Short Essay Questions

1. What lie does Elaine tell to cover her suicide attempt, and why?

2. How does Elaine behave during the interview?

3. How does Elaine react whenever someone asks her for money?

4. What is Elaine's attitude about sleeping with her ex-husband, Jon?

5. Describe Elaine's experience when the girls leave her in the hole.

6. How does Josef react to Susie's injury?

7. Why do Jon and Elaine get married?

8. What is the result of Elaine's mother's miscarriage?

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

10. How does Elaine describe her marriage to Jon?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Elaine's feelings toward Cordelia.

1) Why does Elaine always think she sees Cordelia, wherever she goes?

2) How is the reality of meeting Cordelia different from Elaine's fantasies about meeting Cordelia, and why?

3) Does Elaine have a realistic idea of what Cordelia is like? In what ways is Elaine's perception of Cordelia flawed, and in what ways is it accurate?

4) What are Elaine's positive and negative feelings toward Cordelia? Are the two women friends? Have they ever been friends?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the trauma left by Elaine's abuse as a child.

1) How do Elaine's memories impact her life at the time of the retrospective? How do they impact her art and her perception of the world?

2) In what ways is Elaine trapped by the past? Why does she badly want an explanation from Cordelia?

3) Can Elaine be free of trauma from her past abuse? Is she free at the end of the book? How might her life change?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the portrayal of men in the book.

1) How are Elaine's lovers, Josef, Jon, and Ben, portrayed in the book? What is Elaine's attitude toward her lovers?

2) How do Elaine's relationships with men differ from her relationships with women? Why is Elaine more comfortable with men than with women?

3) How is Elaine's father portrayed in the book? How is her brother portrayed? How do her relationships with her father and brother affect her relationships with other men?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 715 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample