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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 is in the chapel that Madelyne wants to retrieve?

2. Who wants to save Madelyne but is refused?

3. During the battle at Louddon's castle, Madelyne decides she tries to save whom?

4. Why is it unusual that Edmond agrees with Gilard?

5. When does Edmund ask Duncan to hold down Madelyne?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Duncan think that Madelyne helps Adela heal?

2. In what way does Duncan begin the battle?

3. What is Duncan's reaction to Madelyne's actions to rescue and warm him?

4. When Duncan and his men stop for the night for the first time after leaving the castle, what actions do they take to set up camp?

5. How is the squire with the bright yellow hair described?

6. What is Madelyne's reaction to hearing that Duncan and Gilard are going to war because of a sister?

7. What kinds of things does Madelyne do during the enforced isolation during her recovery?

8. Why is Louddon shocked when he first sees Madelyne after she returns from years at the monastery?

9. Why does Duncan decide to allow the battle to take place before they reach his castle?

10. How does a new found friendship with Madelyne transform Adela?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the function of Gerald in the novel and how does the author use him to contribute to the story as a whole? How does he relate to the Wexton men? How does he relate to Madelyne and Adela? Does the addition of this character advance the plot, reveal character in one or more of the main characters, provide the opportunity for allusion to Greek myths, something else? Pick three ways that the author uses the character of Gerald to advance some aspect of the story and provide examples from the novel to support your argument.

Essay Topic 2

In romance novels, the typical heroine changes over time. Honor's Splendour is published in 1987. At the time, the heroine in a romance novel is typically beautiful, admirable in some way, sometimes weak, and often needs a man to save her. Compare and contrast Madelyne to the typical romance novel heroine. Use her relationships with at least two other characters in the novel to prove that she is either a typical or an atypical romance novel heroine. Provide examples from the novel to support your argument.

Essay Topic 3

At the end of the novel Madelyne is pregnant, although she doesn't immediately realize it and Duncan finally breaks the news to her. Pregnancy may be symbolic for a fulfillment of the future, new experiences, self awareness, personal growth and the cycle of life. How does the novel describe Madelyne's pregnancy? Why does everyone know that Madelyne is pregnant except for Madelyne? Is there more than one reason for this, an obvious reason and a less obvious one? What does this mean about Madelyne's self-awareness? Is Madelyne a changed woman from the beginning of the novel? Is there more room for growth? Is the pregnancy seen as a reward for Madelyne and Duncan, or something else? Pick three ways in which the pregnancy is symbolic of some aspect of the change in Madelyne, or the change in the relationship between Madelyne and Duncan. Use examples from the novel to support your argument.

(see the answer keys)

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