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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. When H.H. asks Lolita’s school friend about what kind of boys Lolita knows in Part 2, Chapter 9, the girl replies that they are rivals for whose affections?

2. H.H. says he and Lolita were “somewhere between Snow and” what town when they got a flat in Part 2, Chapter 19?

3. The narrator describes a “man having a lavish epileptic fit on the ground” where, in Part 2, Chapter 2?

4. Who is the college clergyman that also teaches Bible at Beardsley School in Part 2, Chapter 8?

5. The character Vivian Darkbloom described in Part 2, Chapter 18 is an anagram for whose name?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does H.H. learn from the hospital regarding Lolita’s departure and location in Part 2, Chapter 22? How does he respond?

2. When does Miss Pratt call H.H. to a meeting in Part 2, Chapter 11? What are his impressions as he enters the meeting?

3. How does H.H. go about finding the missing Lolita in Part 2, Chapter 19?

4. What does H.H. surmise about the play that Lolita is performing in, in Part 2, Chapter 13?

5. What does Miss Pratt inform H.H. about his stepdaughter’s performance at the Beardsley School in Part 2, Chapter 11?

6. How does H.H. describe his motivations for writing down this information in Part 2, Chapter 2? What does he describe?

7. How does H.H. effectively manipulate Lolita into secrecy regarding their sexual relationship in Part 2, Chapter 1?

8. What events does H.H. describe during the period surrounding Lolita’s birthday in Part 2, Chapter 12?

9. What does H.H. describe about his and Lolita’s experiences at the cinema in Part 2, Chapter 3?

10. How does H.H. describe his friendship with Gaston Godin in Part 2? Why is H.H. not as concerned about Gaston as he is the other neighbors?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss H.H.’s obsession with “nymphets” and the origins of his hebephilia. How does the narrator explain his beliefs about its origins through the character of Annabel Leigh? Do you think this is an adequate assessment? Why or why not? How might the death of H.H.’s mother contributed to his behavior?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the author’s development of sexual tension in Part 1, Chapters 1-12. How is the sexual tension between Lolita and H.H. illustrated? Given that H.H. is a subjective narrator, how reliable do you think his depictions are of Lolita’s actions?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the transitions in narrative style and form of address throughout the novel. When and where does H.H. break from a strict narrative style to direct address? Where does he speak of himself in third person? What do these instances indicate?

(see the answer keys)

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