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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 Aunt Ada Doom want for breakfast on the day of the wedding?

2. What does not calm Flora?

3. Who arrives at Cold Comfort Farm?

4. Why is Seth happy to be going to the ball?

5. Who has Flora "squared away" by the end of this chapter?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Harkaway tell Flora and what is her response?

2. What is the parallel between Flora and Mr. Neck?

3. What convinces Flora that there is more to Seth than meets the eye and what does it seem she will do about him?

4. What does Flora ask Aunt Ada Doom about Flora's father and what is the answer?

5. How do you think Flora is feeling by the end of the wedding?

6. What do you think it says about Dick that he has decided to ask Elfine to marry him after she has made herself gorgeous?

7. What is ironic about the scene with Urk and Miriam?

8. How are Seth's life and Elfine's life similar?

9. What does Dr. Mudel suggest to "fix" Judith Starkadder and what do you think is Judith's fixation that is causing problems?

10. What actually produces an emotional response from Flora (as opposed to her usual practical nature) and how does Flora deal with the situation?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In response to her new living situation after the death of her parents, Flora decides to stay with members of her family and then eventually get married. Discuss the following:

1. Why do you think Flora plans to eventually marry? What are her motives for this decision?

2. As Flora discusses her marriage plans for the future in chapter one, do you think she is planning to marry for love? Why or why not? What about at the end of the novel?

3. Why do you think marriage is one of the best (or one of the few) options for women in 1930s England?

Essay Topic 2

Wrapping it up: Though COLD COMFORT FARM is a parody of another type of genre, its characters are endearing and memorable and much of what happens to the characters is not entirely in the realm of improbability. Choose one of the following to discuss:

1. Discuss the tradition of storytelling and how it is used in this novel.

2. Each person in this novel, and in "real" life has his or her own "story." Choose three characters and briefly tell his or her "story" from a different perspective than that which is shown in the book.

3. Stories can be classified in various ways--"tall tales" are obviously not meant to be believed as having actually occurred. Factual stories supposedly tell something exactly as it truly happened. Many stories are a mixture of fact and fiction. Choose four of the stories in this book and analyze them as to their seeming veracity, their purpose, and how they add to the plot and major themes.

Essay Topic 3

Chapter 3 gives an overview of Cold Comfort Farm and some of the main characters of the farm. Discuss the following:

1. What is a Gothic Novel? Give examples.

2. Though COLD COMFORT FARM is not fully a Gothic Novel, what elements in the novel are ones you might find in a Gothic novel? Give examples.

3. Do you think the Gothic elements in the novel add to the novel's purpose? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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