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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 Mme la Comtesse throw into the fire?

2. What does the canon suggest that the priest write down?

3. What does the priest do regarding his health this morning?

4. What is the only beverage the priest drinks now?

5. Where is the doctor that the young priest wants to see?

Short Essay Questions

1. What advice does the doctor give the priest?

2. Why has the girl, Seraphita, tied a string tightly around her leg?

3. What is the Cure de Torcy's simplistic advice for the young priest who feels he is suffering a crisis of faith and vocation?

4. Describe the encounter between the priest and Mlle Chantal.

5. The book ends not with a diary entry but a letter. Explain the originator of the letter and its contents.

6. What secret and personal pain does Mme la Comtesse reveal to the priest?

7. What is the state of the priest's health in Chapter 7?

8. How does the priest attempt to break down the emotional barriers Mme la Comtesse has set up around herself?

9. What does the priest learn from the sacristan regarding the general perception people have of him?

10. Why is Mme la Comtesse adamant about sending Mlle Chantal to finishing school?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Another important theme in the book is poverty. The priest never has enough money to meet his needs and is even slightly humiliated for his lack by the townspeople. Explain the priest's internal struggle as he attempts to find his way in both the spiritual and physical worlds. What challenges does he have to overcome? How does he accomplish that?

Essay Topic 2

The priest puts the needs of others ahead of his own even though he is very sick. Explain the nature of selfless love such as this. How does the priest exhibit it throughout the novel?

Essay Topic 3

The climax of the novel is the priest's confrontation with Mme la Comtesse. Explain the nature of a literary climax and why this incident is the climax of this book. Now, write an alternate way this confrontation could have gone. Use creativity!

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