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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. Why does Lisa Shilling wait until Mr. Goodman is in the room before she deliberately walks through a floor-to-ceiling window?

2. Mary Nell Fickett states Lisa Shilling's diagnosis is "'a paranoid or a schizophrenic, and maybe both together'" (p. 68). Elizabeth Frazer disagrees and states Lisa's diagnosis is...

3. As the group therapy sessions continue, why does Mary Nell Fickett lose confidence?

4. What diagnosis is described by "when someone wants to do something and yet knows he shouldn't, he reaches out for the thing he shouldn't have, remembers he shouldn't have it, and pulls back. He can go through this for hours, days, years, which makes him absolutely motionless, afraid to do anything" (p. 62)?

5. When Rev. Fickett and Mr. Milne tell Mr. Shilling that his daughter Lisa is in serious trouble, what is Mr. Shilling's first assumption about Lisa's problem?

Short Essay Questions

1. Betsy Goodman meets with Mr. Bernstein several times and he explains why he cannot become involved. Yet she continues to turn to him for help. Why does Betsy continue to attempt to rely on Mr. Bernstein?

2. Cover photographs aside, what narratives clues are there that identify the four protagonists as white?

3. Describe Lisa Shilling's punctuality and dependability.

4. Mary Nell Fickett and Betsy Goodman briefly consider inviting Lisa Shilling's younger sister Tracy to their group therapy sessions. They decide against it. Why do they decide against it?

5. After Lisa Shilling deliberately walks through a glass window she is hospitalized with fairly serious injuries. She remains in the hospital for at least a few days. Mary Nell Fickett assumes that this suicide attempt necessarily will involve social workers who will force Mr. and Mrs. Shilling to confront Lisa's mental illness. However, this does not occur. Why?

6. How might the narrative differ if the protagonists were male?

7. Betsy Goodman is watching a television program about a mentally ill (and committed) patient when Lisa Shilling arrives. Why does Lisa's appearance make Betsy uncomfortable?

8. If you were in Lisa's situation, to whom would you turn for help?

9. Lisa Shilling occasionally talks in a deep, sultry voice with a notable English accent. Betsy Goodman associates this English-sounding Lisa with the dark Lisa. In popular psychology, what type of mental illness would account for this distinction?

10. Describe the typical group therapy session involving Lisa Shilling, Betsy Goodman, Mary Nell Fickett, and Elizabeth Frazer.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the process of maturation demonstrated by the character of Mary Nell Fickett. How does she change and grow during the events of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Imagine you are on a jury deciding the apportionment of 'blame' for Lisa's worsening condition. Which character of the novel would you select to receive the lion's share of the blame for Lisa spending many months with worsening symptoms without receiving adequate professional help. For this exercise, you may not select Mr. or Mrs. Shilling. Explain and defend your selection.

Essay Topic 3

Of the four primary mothers in the novel--Mrs. Shilling, Mrs. Goodman, Mrs. Fickett, and Mrs. Frazer--who would you least like to have as a mother? Why?

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