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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. How was __Les Liaisons Dangereuses_ treated after the turn of the 20th century?

2. What does Madame de Volanges discover about her daughter?

3. What is the main rule of Valmont's and Merteuil's seductions?

4. Who does Valmont trick to spend time with the Vicomtesse de M?

5. In letter 52, what does Valmont accuse Madame de Tourvel of slandering?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Valmont describe Madame de Tourvel?

2. How does the Publisher's Foreword introduce the novel?

3. What action does Valmont take to make Madame de Tourvel love him, and what are the results?

4. What does Merteuil assert is the reason women become "victims" of seduction?

5. What does the author of the Introduction say about potential political messages of social commentary in Laclos' novel?

6. What are Merteuil and Valmont's plans for Danceny and Cécile at the beginning of Part II?

7. What does Merteuil suggest, in different forms, to Cécile and Valmont?

8. What subterfuge does Valmont use to come into possession of Madame de Tourvel's letters?

9. What defines or designates the "libertine" literary tradition?

10. What does the author of the Introduction say is particularly engaging about Laclos' use of the epistolary form?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the theme of male solidarity in the novel. Consider the following situations: the three men involved with Prévan's legendary seduction bond together to ruin all three women who are also Prévan's targets; Valmont convinces Madame de Tourvel's confessor, Father Anselme, to allow Valmont access to Madame de Tourvel; Valmont and Danceny, after dueling, bond together to ruin Merteuil. Are there similar instances of female solidarity in the novel? How does this influence your interpretation of gender roles in the novel? How are "communities," or even friendships, gendered in the text?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the role that religion, church, and the clergy have in the novel. How does each character treat, refer to, or interact with religion, faith and morality? Explain the reasoning behind the following categorizations of the main characters, based upon the characters' views on, or influence from, religion: Merteuil and Valmont; Madames de Rosemonde, de Volanges, and de Tourvel; Cécile and Danceny.

Essay Topic 3

Compare and contrast the Publisher's Note and Editor's Preface. What is their significance to the work? What messages are they each trying to get across? What is the tone of each? How do they try to influence the readers of the novel? In which ways do they define the work? Why does Laclos include them both? After reading the novel, do you read them or understand them in a different way? How do they compare to typical prefatory material in other works? Is the Publisher's Note after the last letter related in any way to Laclos' introductions?

(see the answer keys)

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