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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. In Chapter 1 of Volume 5, what subject does Tristram discuss?

2. Who does Bridget plan to seduce?

3. What does Walter Shandy like to drink?

4. Who is called to tend Tristram's wound in Volume 5?

5. What does the commissary accidentally damage in Volume 7?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Tristram's mother eavesdrop on Walter and Toby's conversation in Volume 5?

2. What irony exists in Walter Shandy's attempt to write a child-rearing book?

3. Why does Trim take responsibility for Tristram's injury in Volume 5?

4. What inconsistencies exist in Tristram's friendship with Eugenuis?

5. What position does Toby recommend Billy Le Fever assume in the Shandy household?

6. What unusual friend does Tristram make in Lyon?

7. Why does Tristram decide to travel abroad in Volume 7?

8. How does the Shandy household react to the news of Bobby's death?

9. How does communication among the characters disintegrate in Volume 8?

10. How does Toby discover his love for Widow Wadham?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What views about social class are expressed in the novel? How do the Shandys treat their servants? Why does Dr. Slop make such a point to verbally abuse Obidiah and complain about the midwife? What perception of social class does Tristram express?

Essay Topic 2

What impact does superficial and self-serving behavior have on the characters in the novel? Do any of the characters demonstrate growth or emotional development? What point might Sterne be making about human behavior?

Essay Topic 3

What views are expressed about "modern" (as in the current 18th century practices) medicine as compared to folk medicine in the novel? How does the midwife's practical experience compare to the doctor's formal medical training? What concerns are raised about each character's medical abilities and how are these concerns addressed in the novel?

(see the answer keys)

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