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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. Who do Hamish and Mary visit in the city?

2. Where does the author finally set down the item in her hand?

3. Jerry watches boys dive and then ___________________.

4. What is set to take place the following week?

5. What does the man in #82 when the woman rebuffs him?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the premise of "Wine"?

2. What is the setting for "The Eye of God in Paradise"?

3. What does George Talbot learn about the woman with whom he has had an affair for several years?

4. What is the meaning of Rose's obsession with adopting Jill?

5. What is the significance of the author leaving the heart behind?

6. What angers George about the way Rose notifies him of her mother's death?

7. What is Lessing's writing style in the majority of the stories?

8. What does George ask of his ex-wife as he struggles with the physical pain of a break up?

9. What is the premise of "The Day Stalin Died"?

10. What is the premise of "Pleasure"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The frustration of unfulfilled affection touches several characters in the stories. Name at least two characters who experience unfulfilled love and the situations that occur as a result.

Essay Topic 2

What is the overall setting for the stories in the book? Be sure to include geography, time period and any pertinent popular culture events. Why did Lessing choose to use these places in the stories?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the role of the family in Lessing's stories.. What does it mean for some of the characters? How does the family evolve in its support of each other? How are some of the families fractured? Give examples.

(see the answer keys)

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