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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 Louis do after the priest vomits blood?

2. What does Mlle Chantal do at the priest's house before he leaves for Lille?

3. Where does the priest spend the night?

4. To what does the doctor not pay as much attention as the priest thinks he should?

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

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. What is the priest's diary entry on the night before he leaves for Lille?

4. What does the priest note about his illness in Chapter 6?

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

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

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

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

9. In what ways does the canon attempt to help the young priest manage his life?

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

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the role of pride and arrogance in the young priest's life? Does he feel he is elevated in the eyes of the parishioners? In his own eyes? Why does he look down upon Louis Duprety who leaves the priesthood?

Essay Topic 2

Another important theme in the book is injustice. Who are the characters who are most affected by injustice in life? How do these characters manage their lives? Do any of the characters rise above their situations or do they stay mired in the inequities of life?

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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