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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. According to Dolmance, Christianity is just a newer form of what?

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

3. Which style of copulation is not demonstrated in this section?

4. In the Third Dialogue, which fluid is incorrectly identified as operative in procreation?

5. In the Fourth Dialogue, what combination of sexual acts does Madame de Saint-Ange advocate?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Dolmance.

2. How does Madame de Saint-Ange recommend a married woman carry out her infidelity?

3. How is Madame de Saint-Ange acquainted with Eugenie?

4. How does Dolmance decry religion in this section?

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

6. Why is sodomy, according to Dolmance, the height of libertine pleasure?

7. What standing wager does Madame de Saint-Ange have?

8. How does Eugenie respond to finding Dolamnce in the boudoir in the Third Dialogue?

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

10. Describe Dolmance's defense of incest.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In a point-counterpoint essay, determine what the Marquis de Sade would be satirizing if The Bedroom Philosophers were satire. Would his targets be the French aristocracy? The Revolution? Is it more reasonable to believe that he intends the text as a critique of excess? Discuss, on the other hand, what Sade's goal would be if the text were earnest. What evidence from his personal life would contend that the book should be taken straight?

Essay Topic 2

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 3

In the pamphlet Chevalier reads in the Fifth Dialogue, an unnamed author refutes the notion that laws are necessary for public order. Over the course of the pamphlet, he disproves the harmful effects of many crimes. Write an essay about three of these crimes. Why does the author state that they are not harmful? What positive effects do they have? What societal changes does the author recommend in harnessing this good?

Part 1) Slander

Part 2) Rape and incest

Part 3) Murder

(see the answer keys)

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