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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 can't Robert concentrate in the house?

2. Where will Catherine live while she is in school?

3. Why has Catherine come to the house?

4. How much of Robert's ability does Claire think she has inherited?

5. What does Catherine try to destroy at the end of Act 2, Scene 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. Did Hal intentionally take advantage of Catherine when they slept together?

2. What do Robert and Catherine decide to do for dinner?

3. Why is Claire worried about Catherine?

4. Does Hal believe that Catherine wrote the proof? Why or why not?

5. Describe Robert's demeanor throughout the scene.

6. Why has Robert decided to write on the porch?

7. What decision has Catherine made about school?

8. What is Robert examining in the proof?

9. When did Catherine write the proof?

10. Is Hal personally conflicted about taking the notebook?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contract Catherine and Claire. Though they are sisters, they have very different personalities.

1.) How did Claire want Robert's illness handled? How did Catherine want it handled?

2.) What pressure does Claire feel in regards to her family? What pressure does Catherine feel?

3.) How and why does Claire's intervention in her life offend Catherine?

Essay Topic 2

After the funeral, Catherine and Hal spend the night together.

1.) What are the factors that bring them together?

2.) How are they each tied to the memory of Robert? Is Catherine warding off the pain by succumbing to something physical?

3.) Who is the aggressor? Are they equally attracted to each other?

Essay Topic 3

Claire is a very different character from Catherine, but has a very distinct point of view in the play.

1.) What does Claire do for a living? Is she a mathematical person too?

2.) What was Claire's contribution during Robert's illness? How does this make Catherine somewhat beholden to her?

3.) Describe Claire's personality. How does she differ from Catherine and Robert?

(see the answer keys)

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