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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. Which Christian denomination do Leonora Ashburnham's parents follow?

2. In Part 3, Chapter 4, Captain Edward Ashburnham has a series of daydreams. What does Captain Edward Ashburnham imagine in his daydreams?

3. On the Ashburnham's last night at Nauheim, what does Leonora Ashburnham see when she goes into her husband's room to check in on him?

4. What is the name of the courtesan who Captain Edward Ashburnham becomes obsessed with in Monte Carlo?

5. What is the name of the man with whom Leonora tries to have an affair?

Short Essay Questions

1. What must Nancy reject in order to make her decision to meet her mother in Glasgow?

2. Who is Nancy's father? Edward White or Cornell Rufford?

3. Given Captain Edward Ashburnham's adulterous history, why does Leonora Ashburnham send Edward and Nancy to a concert together?

4. How has Captain Edward Ashburnham changed since his youth?

5. Do you agree with John Dowell when he says that Captain Edward Ashburnham does not feel remorse?

6. Part 4, Chapter 4 seems to imply that the Ashburnhams have been lying to Nancy about her family. Is it right for the Ashburnhams to keep Nancy Rufford's family history a secret?

7. Do you think Nancy is a good judge of character?

8. Of what significance is the discovery that John Hurlbird's heart disease was a misdiagnosis?

9. Why does John Dowell dislike Rodney Bayham?

10. Does Leonora Ashburnham approve of the affair between Captain Edward Ashburnham and Maisie Maidan?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast The Good Soldier's two male main characters, Edward Ashburnham and John Dowell. Are either of these characters more of a "man" than the other? Of these two characters, who does Ford seem to sympathize with the most? What qualities make either of these characters more sympathetic than the other? If Ford does indeed elevate John over Edward, or vice versa , what does his preference imply about the overall message of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Why does John Dowell not intervene in Edward Ashburnham's suicide? Does John fail to intervene because he wants to treat Edward as compassionately as one putting down a suffering old dog? Or does John not intervene for more sinister reasons? What are the possible motivations John may have for allowing Edward to die?

Essay Topic 3

What is Leonora Ashburnham's motivation for keeping John Dowell in the dark about his wife's affair with Edward Ashburnham?

(see the answer keys)

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