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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 has Renee decided is a fraud?

2. What can Renee hear just after Chabrot comes to tell Renee that Arthens has died?

3. How does Renee think of Manuela?

4. Why does Renee hide her intelligence from others?

5. What does Paloma begin to drink in the morning?

Short Essay Questions

1. What causes Renee to reflect on the meaning of life and what is her conclusion?

2. What is Renee's educational background and who fostered her desire to learn?

3. What does Paloma believe about life and why?

4. Describe Renee Michel.

5. What does Renee say when the son of a tenant in the building says something to Renee about Marx?

6. What does Paloma think is important to her mother and what does she say about her mother?

7. How does the young man who mentions Marx react to Renee's suggestion, and what is Renee's response?

8. Describe Olympe.

9. What does Paloma Josse believe her future will be like and how does she plan to avoid that future?

10. What filmmaker has Renee recently been introduced to and which film does she like of his and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

"The Elegance of the Hedgehog" belongs to the novel genre. Discuss the following:

1. Define the literary term "genre" and give several examples of three other genres in addition to the novel genre.

2. Discuss two reasons why it might be useful to label a text by genre and two reasons it might be disadvantageous to label a text by genre.

3. What do you think is the difference between a novel and a historical novel?

Essay Topic 2

1. What is foreshadowing? How many incidences of foreshadowing are in "The Elegance of the Hedgehog"? How does foreshadowing contribute to a book's suspense?

2. Discuss an example of foreshadowing in "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" including why you believe it is foreshadowing. Include examples from the book and your own life to illustrate your answer.

3. How do you think most people react to uncertainty in their lives? Use examples from "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" and your own live to support your opinion.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the following:

1. Who is/are the protagonists of the story and why?

2. Who is/are the antagonists of the story and why?

3. Which 3 secondary characters have the greatest impact on the plot?

4. Are any of the characters dispensable and which ones? Why or why not?

5. Do you think this is a character-driven plot or an action-driven plot? Explain.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 957 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample