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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 does the boarding house housemaid decide to quit?

2. What does a man ask Ruth to pay for in a letter in Chapter LXXII?

3. What do Ruth's friends laugh about spending $50 on in Chapter XLI?

4. What does Mr. Walter tell Ruth in a letter in Chapter LXXX?

5. What does Hyacinth instruct Mr. Gates not to do in a letter?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Ruth travel to City Hall to do in Chapter LI?

2. What does Mrs. Millet allow Ruth to do every week at her home?

3. In Chapter LIII when Mrs. Skiddy finds her husband has not returned home from work, where does she find him?

4. Who does Katy meet after leaving her grandfather's home in Chapter XLV?

5. What is the dinner at Mr. Ellet's home contrasted with in Chapter LXI?

6. What does Ruth worry about despite having found a newspaper to publish her work in Chapter LXII?

7. Who does Ruth find has died at the hospital for the insane?

8. Why does the boarding house housemaid quit her job in Chapter XLVII?

9. Who is Mrs. Waters and what image does she have of herself?

10. What sends a shudder down Ruth's spine in Chapter LIV?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

After living in poverty, Ruth is able to gain economic independence. How is she able to do this? How does this financial freedom change her life? Who helped her achieve economic independence? What does it mean for her family?

Essay Topic 2

Who are the antagonists of the novel and why? How do they impact Ruth's life? How does she defeat them?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze and interpret the secondary characters of the novel. What are their defining character traits? What are their roles in the story? Describe their relationships with the protagonist, Ruth.

(see the answer keys)

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