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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. After the newscast, what realization does Paul choose to withhold from Claire?

2. What do Paul and Claire see on the news?

3. On the night of the dinner, when Paul is finally able to see the end of the cell phone video, what does he discover?

4. What additional information does Paul learn from his web searching?

5. What promise does Paul elicit from Claire after he begins his treatment?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Paul describe the relationship between Michel and Rick in Chapter 26?

2. What advice does Paul give to Michel in Chapter 23? Why?

3. How does Paul's house appear when Babette and Serge visit while Claire is in the hospital?

4. How does Michel react to the scene at the bicycle shop?

5. How does Paul set up dinners for he and Michel while Claire is in the hospital?

6. How is Beau's behavior compared with that of Michel and Rick in the scenario presented in Chapter 21?

7. How does Paul deal with Michel while Claire is ill?

8. What response does Claire have as she and Paul watch the surveillance video on television?

9. What has Paul prepared for dinner when Serge and Babette visit while Claire is in the hospital? Why?

10. What effects does Paul's medication have on him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore and evaluate Claire and Michel's "solution." Why do you think the author chose to have the final decisive actions taken by characters other than the narrator? What would be Paul's solution to the problem?

Essay Topic 2

Explore significance of the novel's narrative style. What would the novel be like if told from one of the other characters' points of view? Do you think the other characters in the novel would be more or less reliable narrators? Why?

Essay Topic 3

The meal in The Dinner is delivered in courses meant to develop a sense of anticipation in the diners. Write an essay exploring the novel's use of the dinner courses as an ongoing symbol. How does the meal motif echo the reading experience? How does the course-oriented structure mirror the escalating tensions over the course of the evening? What was the author attempting to communicate by organizing the novel this way?

(see the answer keys)

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