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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. Which character present or discussed in the First Dialogue is a stand-in for the Marquis de Sade?

2. According to Sade in To the Libertines, what is the only way one can find transcendence?

3. According to Madame in the Third Dialogue, what is the psychological effect of semen's operation in conception?

4. How many of Madame's own children has she killed?

5. According to Dolmance, what does God have no reason to do?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Dolmance think about parental control of children?

2. At the beginning of this section, what argument does Dolmance make regarding virtue?

3. What hypothetical sexual inundation do Dolmance and Madame concoct in the Fourth Dialogue?

4. What odd and incorrect theories of conception are discussed in the Third Dialogue?

5. How does Chevalier frame Dolamnce's entrance in the First Dialogue?

6. According to Sade in To the Philosphers, what is the key to happiness?

7. Describe Dolmance's defense of incest.

8. What specific instructions does Sade give his readers about emulating characters in To the Libertines?

9. How does Eugenie decide to murder her mother?

10. What sexual acts are covered in this section of the book?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Madame de Saint-Ange is the ideal of feminine libertinage in Sade's work. Her lessons in the book concern the way a woman must adapt to live a life of wanton pleasure. In a two-part essay, discuss Madame de Saint-Ange's views:

Part 1) What is the importance of marriage in the life of a woman libertine? What precautions must the woman take to ensure her husband is not aware of his activities? How does being married offer new opportunities to a libertine woman? Discuss the details of Madame de Saint-Ange's marriage.

Part 2) What role does the childbirth play in the role of a libertine? How does Madame de Saint-Ange explain a woman should take precautions? What experience has she had with childbirth?

Essay Topic 2

The dialogues of The Bedroom Philosophers are intended to be perversions of Socratic dialogues, in which a philosopher takes a given dictum and dissects it, disproving it piece by piece. In an essay, choose one dialogue and discuss how the libertine dissects a given social more. What component of society is the character refuting? What does he or she find at fault in it? How does he or she disprove this fault, and what conclusion is reached?

Essay Topic 3

In an essay, discuss the role of incest in The Bedroom Philosophers. Which characters either partake or plan to partake in incestuous relationships in the text? What pleasure do the libertines glean from these relationships? Discuss Dolmance and the unnamed pamphleteer's passionate defenses of the taboo act. What is the Marquis de Sade trying to achieve by actively defending the indefensible practice?

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