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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. Who does Eileen write to in order to have Elizabeth excused from the class in Chapter 3?

2. What is the name of the woman who gets Elizabeth to Dunlaoghaire?

3. What is the name of the abortionist that Elizabeth goes to?

4. Who is excited about Elizabeth's arrival in the O'Connor family?

5. How does Stone treat Elizabeth after they have sex in Chapter 9?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Elizabeth sees Violet and Harry in Chapter 8, what does Harry encourage her to do? How has her mother changed?

2. What horrifies young Sean when Elizabeth arrives in Chapter 2?

3. What decision do the adults in Elizabeth's life reach in order to settle their problems?

4. How does Sean Sr. react when Sean Jr. enlists? What change occurs within the family ranks?

5. What does Violet announce the day before Elizabeth's sixteenth birthday?

6. What does Elizabeth pray for in Chapter 5?

7. What could have interfered with Eileen's willingness to take in Elizabeth?

8. What event does Elizabeth look forward to in Chapter 4? What does she worry might ruin this event?

9. How has Violet changed in the time Elizabeth has been away?

10. What does Joannie Murray do in Chapter 4?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the setting of the novel. How important is the setting to novel? How does WWII affect the characters? What does Ireland teach Elizabeth? What does England teach Aisling? What differences are illustrated between England and Ireland? What if the novel had been set in a different place and time? In your opinion, would the choices of the protagonists be different? If so, how?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss love and romance in the novel "Light a Penny Candle". Who does Elizabeth first fall in love with? How does this relationship sway her decisions and affect the rest of her life? Does she find true happiness with her husband Henry? Why or why not? Does Aisling ever love Tony? Does she ever love Stone?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the motif of sex in the novel "Light a Penny Candle". What are Elizabeth's and Aisling's attitudes towards sex when they are young in Ireland? How do their attitudes change as they mature? What are the characters' opinions on premarital sex?

(see the answer keys)

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