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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. In Chicago, Clare's husband

2. Helga marries Pleasant Green and moves to

3. Helga's most recent infant

4. As to Clare's motives, Irene is

5. Helga grows tired and ill from

Short Essay Questions

1. What role, if any, does Clare's husband play in the story so far? Is he a comforting presence? Why, or why not? Is he a likable character?

2. What is it that has kept Clare from leaving her husband and living permanently in Harlem?

3. What kind of parent is Clare Kendry? What are the clues, thus far, that help us to draw conclusions about her parenting abilities? How has Larsen informed us about this?

4. Things have taken a turn for the worse at the Redfields'. What are the clues that the story is inching toward a conclusion as it pertains to the Redfields and Clare Kendry? What conclusions can we draw about this section of the story?

5. Is there anything we can deduce about Irene's response to Clare's letter without knowing the whole story? If so, what are they?

6. What is the author's intention when she puts the two women together in the hotel restaurant scene? What conclusions can we draw from Irene's memory of that day?

7. What is odd about the initial meeting among Irene, Gertrude and Clare? Are these conversations typical among women friends? What, if anything, makes the visit among the three women unusual?

8. Discuss Helga's new exuberance as the wife of a minister.

9. What is the burden that these characters carry with them throughout the story?

10. Speculate on why Clare is silent at the Redfield dinner table, but talkative and gregarious a parties with others. Does she have a split personality, or is she just shy at the Redfields'? How does Larsen let on what is going on without saying it?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Why did Helga Crane not fit into the culture of Naxos? Larsen suggests several reasons, but one stands out above the rest. Helga is a complex character, but has some basic flaws that hinder her development. What were they, and how did they hurt her?

Essay Topic 2

Who made up high society in the black population in New York in the 1920s? What did these people do for a living? From where did their money come? Focus on three examples of historical figures and discuss their occupations and lifestyles.

Essay Topic 3

From a woman's perspective, did Larsen break ground for or elevate women in her writing? For blacks? For black women? How did Larsen's characters portray women, in general? Was it constructive? Do the characters provide an example of strong, evolving womanhood? Why, or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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