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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 does Stoner insist Edith do after they are married that seems to open her up?

2. What is the name of the college the protagonist attended?

3. What is the name of the child Edith has?

4. What subject does the protagonist teach in college?

5. What colleague of William's is described as having a bitter and ironic sense of humor?

Short Essay Questions

1. How has Edith changed when she returns home from her father's funeral?

2. How is Edith and William's relationship described when they return from their honeymoon?

3. How is William's first meeting with Edith described in the book?

4. How does William react after being offered a teaching job at the University of Missouri?

5. How does William tell his parents about continuing to study English in college rather than agriculture?

6. Why does Edith's father commit suicide?

7. How is William's experience in his first English class described?

8. How is William and Lomax's conversation described at William's housewarming party?

9. What is the nature of the letter William receives from Edith after he proposes to her?

10. How is Sloane's funeral described?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast the characters Katherine and Edith in the book. How might William consider Katherine everything he wished for Edith to be and what is holding Edith back from being that person for him?

Essay Topic 2

Examine the concept of the University that is portrayed in the book through William and his school friends. What are the different views of the University presented by William, David Masters, and Archer Sloane in the book and whose idea do you most agree with?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the author's portrayal of marriage in the book. What does William wish to get out of being married despite showing little passion for anything besides his education? Does he feel it's just a duty he must fulfill to fit in or does he truly find love in Edith?

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This section contains 668 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample