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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. For whose benefit does the King ask Merivel to marry Celia?

2. What animal does the King ask Merivel to cure?

3. What does Celia say that she did, when she found out Merivel was the one chosen to be her husband?

4. Who does Celia love?

5. What can't Merivel remember when he sees Celia again?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Degeulasse de Gourly come to visit Merivel?

2. How does Merivel's message to Celia differ from what the King told him to say?

3. Describe what Finn tells Merivel about the present Finn brings.

4. Why does Reverend Sackpole want Merivel to examine Nell?

5. What does Merivel find when he returns home?

6. What does Celia look like?

7. How does Merivel feel about life at the palace?

8. What does Merivel fantasize about while he's having sex with Violet?

9. What is the distinction between the Idle and the Impotent?

10. What is Merivel's job at the palace?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the values of the characters in the novel, and how the characters assign value to both material and immaterial things.

1) Discuss the valuation of the "nightingale." What gives it value to Merivel, Pearce, and Celia. Why?

2) How do the characters value immaterial things, such as love, friendship, family, tradition, and religion? What role do immaterial things play in the characters' lives?

3) How do the characters value other people? What is this valuation based on?

Essay Topic 2

Merivel experiences different types of lives in the novel. He lives in the King's Court. He lives in a manor as a Lord. He also lives in a mental hospital, and in Cheapside, an impoverished area of London. In these different ways of life, Merivel finds differnt kinds of fulfillment and happiness. Discuss fulfillment and happiness in the novel.

1) Where is Merivel most fulfilled and happiness? Why?

2) Compare Merivel's happiness in the presence of the King to his happiness in the presence of Pearce. What different types of fulfillment do Merivel's most valued friends provide him?

3) How does Merivel's perception of what will make him happy change over the course of the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Power is a defining element in relationships in the novel. Discuss power in the novel.

1) What gives characters power over others in the novel?

2) What gives the King power, and what are the limits of the King's power? How does the King use his power?

3) What kind of power does Merivel have as a doctor and as an associate of the King in the novel? How does he use this power?

(see the answer keys)

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