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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 happens the night Jo gets back to Connecticut from her trip to Bethie's?

2. What city does Bethie fly to Detroit from when she comes home to visit in 1974?

3. Where does Bethie go with the new person she meets in New York City in Part III?

4. What does Sarah tell Bethie in Part III about her opinion of Bethie?

5. What does Jo try the hardest to forgive Bethie for in Part IV?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Bethie's impression of Jo's state of mind when she visits her in Connecticut?

2. How does Jo react when Bethie asks her about Shelley?

3. What do many of Jo's neighbors say during Bethie's consciousness-raising exercise about their lives in Part IV?

4. What does Jo find in Shelley's closet that prompts a huge fight between them?

5. In Part III, how does Bethie make a living?

6. What happens when Jo comes back to Atlanta for a visit with Bethie in Part IV?

7. Why does Jo go to Shelley's wedding in Part III?

8. In Part III, what happens that marks a turning point in Bethie's life?

9. In Part III, what is one major frustration Jo has with Shelley?

10. What big life change does Bethie make shortly after her abortion?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing Weiner's treatment of the theme of redemption, especially as she explores it through Jo's and Bethie's characters.

Essay Topic 2

Sarah Kaufman views Bethie as her "good" girl, and she holds high hopes for Bethie's eventual marriage; Sarah seems to see her other daughter Jo as a lost cause and even goes so far as to call her "unnatural." But by Part III, when Jo is married with children and Bethie is drifting around the country and the world, the sisters have switched places in their mother's eyes. Write an essay exploring how Bethie's and Jo's relationships with Sarah change over the course of the novel, citing specific references to the text to help support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

What do Jo's childhood experiences with Mae and Frieda teach her about her mother Sarah's attitudes towards racial equality? Write an essay explaining your answers, citing specific references to the text to help support your arguments.

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