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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 Marie does not cry out at the pain caused by her wounds or by Nector's restraint, what does this suggest?

2. Leopolda claims Marie has received the stigmata because:

3. Who is Nector afraid might have witnessed his tryst with Marie?

4. When Marie pours syrup on her hand while thinking of Leopolda, the scene reminds the reader of what?

5. The neighborhood gossips come around asking about what?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe King's behavior in this chapter.

2. What do Nector's allusions to Moby Dick and Ishmael's "great white monster" suggest?

3. Consider the chapter title "The Bridge." Explain the meaning you derive from this title.

4. Describe Lulu's relationship with Lyman.

5. Describe the effect of Erdrich's motif of weather on the events of the chapter.

6. How is the title "Love Medicine" reflected in the chapter itself.

7. What do Beverly's blurred tattoos and weakened muscles suggest about him? What does the bird's continued flight suggest?

8. Describe Leopolda now that she is old and dying.

9. Why does Lulu choose to go to the Senior Citizens Center?

10. Why don't Marie's plans for Nector's success work out?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Erdrich describes many vehicles throughout the novel, often using them to define characters or lifestyles. Choose 3 characters whose vehicles are described in Love Medicine, and explore their representation of characters of events. What ideas does Erdrich reveal through the vehicles her characters own or drive?

Essay Topic 2

Erdrich often uses animals to symbolize ideas or make connections in her novel. Choose three examples of animals as symbols in Love Medicine, and use them to support a central idea in Erdrich's text. Consider who or what the animals represent, and how Erdrich is using them to communicate a theme or message.

Essay Topic 3

Authors often use the last line of their text to offer thematic resolution. Choose the last line of any chapter and explain its significance in the resolution of a theme in your essay.

(see the answer keys)

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