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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 Therese initially not care for the rooms in which Manuel wants to move?

2. When promising to show the exotic birds to the schoolgirls, what does Manuel say is different about the bird from Brazil?

3. What is a sirocco?

4. What causes Maria to go into deep sleeps?

5. What is Lina's mood whenever the narrator's lovers come to visit?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why will Maria never allow her husband to see her nude and rarely poses for him?

2. How do Novalis and Maria begin to grow apart?

3. Why is Lina angry about the narrator's lovers?

4. Describe Dorothy and Edna in "Two Sisters."

5. What leads up to the schoolgirls running from Manuel at the end of this story?

6. Why does the woman pass out in her story as the Russian dies?

7. What are the differing opinions given on why Lina behaves the way she does with the narrator?

8. For what reasons does Manuel want to move into the apartment with the terrace?

9. Why did the Viking woman get married?

10. How does Michel seduce Lina?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the marriage of Novalis and Maria in terms of their fantasies for one another. Develop a clear thesis statement and be sure to discuss the following (though not exclusively): Novalis's attraction to "Maja Desnuda" and Maria's resemblance to that model, Maria and Novalis's conflicting desires, Maria's conservatism (as well as Novalis's reactions to this), and the changes within their relationship throughout the story. Cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the conflicting gender dynamics of these stories in the following format:

Part 1) Virgins and their desire to have a lover.

Part 2) The violence and pushiness of certain men (such as Rango and Pierre).

Part 3) Lina.

Part 4) The characters' abilities to take control of their own sex lives.

Part 5) Pleasure at the expense of others.

Cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

Why is this book called "Little Birds?" How does the title relate to the activities in the title story of this book? How does this theme relate to other characters and situations? Why is it significant that a collection of erotic stories should choose to have this connotation? In what ways does this help to subvert the idea that this book is merely pornography? Cite specific examples from the text to support your answers.

(see the answer keys)

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