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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. What does Noemí drink at the end of Chapter 24?

2. What word does Francis use in Chapter 23 to describe the transfer of Howard’s soul into Virgil’s body?

3. What plan does Virgil announce during dinner in Chapter 19?

4. According to Virgil in Chapter 13, whom has Noemí really harmed?

5. What is inside the box Howard gives to Noemí and Francis in Chapter 24?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Virgil announce during dinner in Chapter 19? How does Noemí react to this news?

2. How does Howard appear in Chapter 19? What is Noemí forced to do?

3. What is the “gloom,” according to Francis in Chapter 20?

4. How has Howard extended the longevity of his life, as explained by Francis in Chapter 20?

5. What does Francis want Noemí to do in Chapter 14? Why does she refuse?

6. What does Virgil demand Noemí do at the start of Chapter 22? How does he threaten her into obedience?

7. Why do Francis and Noemí argue in Chapter 23?

8. What is odd about the marriage, as explained at the start of Chapter 24?

9. Why is Virgil angry with Noemí in Chapter 15?

10. What does Virgil reveal about the Doyle bloodline in Chapter 22?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Noemí experiences great change over the course of the novel. In what ways does she change and in what ways does she remain the same? By the novel’s end, is she better for these changes? What makes you say this? Explain your opinion using examples from the text.

Essay Topic 2

The role of beauty is a major theme of the novel. Choose three situations in which this theme is illustrated. Explain how each situation illustrates the theme of beauty, and evaluate what the author is trying to say about this subject.

Essay Topic 3

The characters in Mexican Gothic all highlight the idea the past is never truly past. Choose three characters and explain how each illustrates this idea, using textual evidence to support your claims.

(see the answer keys)

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