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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. How old was O'Connor when a photographer visited her in "The King of the Birds"?

2. When will a peacock regrow his feathers once he sheds?

3. Which writer did Henry James say does things in the way that take the most doing?

4. What was the title of the course that O'Connor addressed in The Nature and Aim of Fiction?

5. What did the magazine editorial that challenged American writers say literature lacks?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does O'Connor say about the Manicheans in "The Nature and Aim of Fiction"?

2. How does O'Connor describe grotesque writing?

3. What is the gist of an editorial written to Life magazine regarding writers?

4. Why does O'Connor believe Southern writers are anguished?

5. Why does O'Connor think some people pretend to be unaffected by the peacocks?

6. How does O'Connor react to the editorial's cry for more spiritual writing, showing the joys of life?

7. What dream did O'Connor have at the end of "The King of the Birds"?

8. What does O'Connor mean when she says a writer must find his location in order to do his best work?

9. In what ways did the peafowl wreck the O'Connor farm?

10. What observations does O'Connor make about the student manuscripts she read?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore O'Connor's view that writers should veer away from abstract concepts. What is her stance on using symbols in fiction? When do they work? What is the problem with the way writers use them? How does O'Connor say she uses symbols? How should using symbols tie into addressing reality?

Essay Topic 2

Explore the challenges a Catholic writer might face. What problems do Catholic writers face, especially when writing for a secular audience? How might the set beliefs of Catholics affect their vision when creating fiction? What does O'Connor say to these claims? How might these beliefs make a Catholic fiction writer better?

Essay Topic 3

Explore O'Connor's feelings about the peahen. What does she seem to admire about the female birds? Why do you think her admiration of them is so brief? What does her admiration of the female birds seem to represent?

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This section contains 786 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample