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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 the man who claims to have Callie want Milton to negotiate a ransom price with him?

2. Why does Dr. Luce show Callie a pornographic movie?

3. Why does Sourmelina move back to Detroit in 1972?

4. Where does Milton announce he wants the family to travel to?

5. How does Callie's physical development compare to that of the other girls in her sixth grade class?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the series of medical examinations that leads to Callie being referred to Dr. Luce.

2. What masculine traits does Callie begin showing in this chapter?

3. Describe Zora Khyber.

4. How does Milton attempt to down play Callie's condition when telling her about the course of treatment?

5. Why does Callie name her love interest "the Obscure Object"?

6. Why does Callie not discover her hermaphroditism in this chapter?

7. Why does Callie have sex with Jerome?

8. Compare and contrast Milton's and Chapter Eleven's views on the Vietnam War.

9. Describe the circumstances that lead Milton to cancel the Stephanides family's trip to Turkey.

10. Describe the changes in Chapter Eleven that Callie notices when he returns home from his freshman year at college.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the events that lead Calliope to decide to live her life as Cal. Then comment on his/her decision. Did s/he make the right decision? Why or why not? What would you have done if you were in the same situation?

Essay Topic 2

Throughout Middlesex, Jeffrey Eugenides weaves actual events from history (Turkish and American) into his fictional story. Select one of the situations where he places his characters within a real historical context and:

1) Describe the historical context of the scene or chapter (i.e. What actually happened in history that Eugenides uses in the book?).

2) Discuss the relationship between the historical context and the fictional story of the Stephanides family. What does this piece of history have to do with the family's life? Why does Eugenides choose to place these characters at this particular point in the story in this particular historical context?

Essay Topic 3

Middlesex is a first person narrative written from the point of view of Cal. Discuss how this fact influences the story? What biases does Cal bring to the story? How would the nove be different if another character was telling the story? Cite several specific examples from the novel to support your ideas.

(see the answer keys)

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