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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. According to Vanessa on page 260, why is what Strane did to her not a crime?

2. How does Plough describe Vanessa on page 350?

3. According to Vanessa on page 246, what did Strane steal from her?

4. According to Vanessa on page 319, what does Vanessa believe about her role in Strane’s abuse of other girls?

5. What does Vanessa receive in the mail in the wake of Strane’s death?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Jo keep Vanessa in the present moment, as explained on page 369?

2. What does Vanessa learn from Jenny in the spring of 2002?

3. How does Strane react to his encounter with Plough? How does Vanessa react to it?

4. Why does Vanessa feel a need to see Strane, as explained on page 267? What does she get from it? How is this adoration function like a drug?

5. What does Vanessa tell Ruby about the extent of her control over Strane on page 319? What does Ruby say in response?

6. How does Vanessa’s relationship with Strane change after her graduation from college? To what can the reader attribute such change?

7. What does Strane demand of Vanessa following his interaction with Plough?

8. Who is Henry Plough? How does Vanessa compare him to Strane on page 272?

9. What does Vanessa discover while working in the urology department of her father’s hospital?

10. What is Vanessa’s opinion of her teenage self? How does Ruby see a teenage Vanessa, as she explains on page 265?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze the author’s choice to tell this story by using the first-person perspective. How does viewing the action through a first-person perspective affect the story? How would the novel change if the story was told through the third person?

Essay Topic 2

How does My Dark Vanessa illustrate the theme of shame and secrecy? Use textual evidence to support your analysis.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the importance of Ruby and Jo to the novel. Despite the fact that they are not major characters, they have a powerful impact on Vanessa and her path toward healing. Discuss the impact of these characters on Vanessa as well as on the novel’s plot and themes.

(see the answer keys)

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