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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. The dermatologist tells Plum that she is no longer allowed to take what action?

2. What is the name of Plum's first blind date?

3. What is the name of the sitcom starring Marlowe that Plum says she used to watch as a little girl?

4. What does Plum say she can tell about the sales clerk at the plus-size clothing store?

5. When Plum first sees the white poplin dress that has been remade in her size, she describes it as looking like a what?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the arc of Plum's writing career over the course of the novel.

2. What is the significance of Plum's ultrasound image?

3. What does Plum mean when she says, "After years of not fighting back, I was coiled like a snake" (233)?

4. What is the author's purpose for including the reporter Cheryl Crane-Murphy's remark, "As a committed Christian, it pains me to admit that I feel nothing but glee at the death of these pigs" (155)?

5. How is allusion used within the scene when Sana and Plum discuss Plum's fears that her longing for Alicia will return?

6. What personal advice does Julia offer to Plum during their conversation in Plum's bedroom and how does Plum react?

7. What does Plum see while following Kitty into a coffeehouse that stops Plum in her tracks?

8. What is the significance of Plum's response to the little girl on the bus who tells her mother to "look at that big lady" (233)?

9. What is ironic about Kitty's insistence that "all girls are beautiful" (241)?

10. What action of Leeta's does Plum point to as proof that she should be loyal to Leeta, no matter what she has done?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Look carefully at the passages of the novel that describe Plum's responses to the teenage girls who write questions to Kitty. What is the author's purpose for discussing at length the nature of Plum's role as a ghostwriter for Kitty?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the many instances of irony within the novel's narrative and analyze the author's purpose for including each instance you discuss.

Essay Topic 3

Analyze the author's messages regarding rebellion within her novel Dietland.

(see the answer keys)

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