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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. Who does John run into after lunch (at the library)?

2. About whom is John's aunt concerned?

3. What members of the family does John seem to best communicate with?

4. What ails John's brother, Lonnie?

5. Why does Harold love John?

Short Essay Questions

1. What occurs on the ride to the Gulf Coast?

2. What becomes clear about John and Kate's relationship?

3. What is revealed about John's family in this chapter?

4. Where do the two decide to go once at the Gulf Coast and why is John surprised when they arrive?

5. Why is Aunt Emily so upset about Kate, her stepdaughter?

6. What important question does John ask Kate in this chapter?

7. Where does John live?

8. Does Kate understand John's quest?

9. Who does John remind his mother of?

10. Who is John excited to see and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

1. Compare Harold's wife to a typical Southern housewife. How do their actions and behaviors differ from one another?

2. Why is Kate so put out by Harold's wife?

3. Because Kate constantly looks to find her freedom from New Orleans society, is it interesting that Kate is shocked by Harold's wife's actions?

Essay Topic 2

Kate claims that she wanted to feel numb when she took all the sleeping pills. Compare the feeling of numbness with the excitement that Kate feels when she goes to Chicago.

As the novel ends, does Kate give up on her search for independence? Or is she only willing to have a certain kind of independence?

Essay Topic 3

What is John and Kate's journey to Chicago symbolic of? How does their relationship change after they return to New Orleans?

(see the answer keys)

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