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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 mistreated a poor family and then called for his own punishment by whipping?

2. How many children does Courval have?

3. Where does Courval spend most of his time?

4. With what people did the novel originate?

5. At the end of his review, what did Villeterque say would happen to Rousseau, Voltaire, Marmontel, Fielding, and Richardson?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Florville require of Courval before she will agree to marry him?

2. What was Sade's last wish to be respected?

3. What was the contradiction that Villeterque set up regarding glory, virtue, and villainy?

4. What was the description of Sade from March 1793?

5. What does Courval do to find a new wife?

6. Where did Sade believe that the original and eternal Nature existed?

7. What do Sade's admirers admit about Sade's work?

8. According to Beauvoir, what was Sade like at the age of twenty-three?

9. Why did man write novels?

10. What did Klossowski state that Sade believed regarding "Nature in a state of perpetual motion"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Although Sade was an atheist, do you think that he believed himself to be "god-like" or divine? What qualities did he show that would cause one to believe that Sade carried himself like a god? Or, do you believe that Sade thought himself to be simply mortal? Why?

Essay Topic 2

Based upon the historical acceptance of sexual deviancy, do you believe that the actions of the men in "120 Days of Sodom" were criminal? Why/Why not? (Note: Research the historical acceptance of the sexual actions described in the text before you begin your essay.) When were specific acts considered criminal? Which actions were always considered criminal? Which actions were allowed in certain times in history? Were some actions not necessarily allowed, but looked upon as acceptable as long as no one knew of them?

Essay Topic 3

Given that all of the characters in "120 Days of Sodom" were at least 45 years of age, do you believe their "crimes" to be more horrendous than if they were younger men? Sade was 45 years old when "The 120 Days of Sodom" was published. Do you believe that Sade gave them all ages close to his own because the text paralleled his own life? Do you think that you would feel differently about the actions in the text if the men were younger and more "prone" to sexually deviant behaviors?

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