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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. What is peculiar about Félicité's appearance?

2. How does Paul make the journey to Tocqueville?

3. What was the most exciting part of the day in Trouville?

4. What is described as the despair of the other housemaids?

5. What happens to Mme. Aubain's husband?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Flaubert choose to describe the procession of Corpus Christi and Félicité's death? What affect does this have?

2. Why do you think Mme. Aubain shakes slightly when she sees Félicité respond to the news of her nephew's death?

3. Félicité's service for Mme. Aubain is described with some detail. What kind of an impression does Félicité's service give of Mme. Aubain?

4. What are some examples of times when Félicité has been abused or disregarded? Describe them and explain how she is being treated poorly.

5. Do you think it's significant that Félicité misses Virginie's death because she goes back to lock up in case of thieves?

6. On the way to Trouville, Félicité overhears Liebard talking about the woman that Theodore left her to marry, but she does not hear the end of the story. What, if any, function does this have in the story?

7. How is Félicité introduced to the reader in the first chapter?

8. Does it seem important that Félicité asks Fabu's forgiveness before she dies?

9. Does Victor seem to genuinely care for Félicité or is he only interested in taking things from her?

10. Does it seem surprising that Félicité's voice is shrill? Why do you think this detail is included in her description?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the relationship between Félicité and Mme. Aubain. The culminating event in their relationship is, of course, the moment of embrace and equality, but several other things happen between them that helps to place each of them in a certain relationship to the world around them. Write an essay that considers the way that Félicité and Mme. Aubain's relationship helps to ground each of them in a clear relationship to their world. Some details you might want to look at are Mme. Aubain's treatment of Félicité's actual family and Félicité's sense that it was wrong for Mme. Aubain to die before she did.

Essay Topic 2

Mme. Aubain frequently functions as a foil for Félicité. Find several examples of this in the text and consider how Flaubert uses Mme. Aubain to draw attention to various aspects of Félicité's character.

Essay Topic 3

What is the symbolic significance of the parrot? Review the parrots role in the story and create an argument that describes how the parrot functions symbolically in "A Simple Heart." As always, be sure to include specific examples from the text to support your argument.

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