View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where is the center of activity in Yonville?

2. Charles and Emma's relationship grows as they are alone one day discussing what?

3. What language does Emma decide she should learn to make herself feel better?

4. What event does Homais disclose is coming to Yonville?

5. What award is being presented as Rodolphe professes his love for Emma?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Emma's funeral in Part 3: Chapter 9 compare with Emma's day-to-day life?

2. Monsieur Lhereux's character is developed in Part 2: Chapter 5. What clues does a reader get about his character?

3. How does Emma's attitude change towards what other people think of her in Part 2: Chapter 12?

4. What characters are introduced in Part 2: Chapter 1 that seem to be important in the day-to-day life of the small town of Yonville?

5. What experiences does Emma have at the ball at La Vaubyessard in Chapter 8 that seem to redefine her perceptions and expectations?

6. Explain what happens to Homais in Part 3: Chapter 11. Do you think he deserves this?

7. How does Emma sink even deeper in debt in Part 3: Chapter 5?

8. Charles continually sacrifices to make his wife happy. Do you think this shows true selflessness or foolishness?

9. Part 2: Chapter 7 introduces the reader to the foreshadowed relationship between Rodolphe and Emma. What are Rodolphe's perceptions of Emma's character?

10. Emma has a very fickle nature. What are some examples of this that are revealed in Part 2: Chapter 3?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Three characters embody the servant class in the novel: Justin, Félicité, and Mère Rollet. What are their roles in the novel? How do they interact with Emma? They are servants, but Emma also manipulates them to serve her own personal interests. Describe how she does this and what their reactions are to her both in life and in death.

Essay Topic 2

In many ways, Madame Bovary is a critique of the middle-class life, and the constraints, expectations, and disappointments that are a part of it. Compare the world of the Bovarys to a typical American middle class existence. Specifically, address the following issues faced by the typical middle class family today and relate them to themes that Flaubert threads throughout his novel:

- Debt and financial crises

- The increase in depression and the need for therapy

- A search for community through online or virtual meeting places rather than in face-to-face scenarios

Essay Topic 3

Imagine Emma survived her overdose on arsenic. What do you imagine she would have done? How would she have explained her predicament to Charles and solved her financial problems? Would any of the townspeople or her family members come to her aid? Use examples from the novel to support your hypothesis.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,025 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample