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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. Why does Flannery not use paint brushes to paint?

2. What is the title of Flannery's first story published in a magazine?

3. In what city does Flannery visit with Mr. and Mrs. Rumsey Haynes?

4. Flannery writes that the Ku Klux Klan lit a cross on the lawn of ________________.

5. What is the name of Flannery's first novel?

Short Essay Questions

1. What angst does Flannery experience regarding a new editor and the reimbursement of an advance?

2. What topics seem to run consistently through Flannery's letters?

3. What do Flannery's letters always seem to be a blend of?

4. How old was Flannery when her father died and where did the family live?

5. Why does Flannery say that Catharine Carver's decision to leave Harcourt Brace impacts her life?

6. What important note about Flannery does the editor include at the beginning of this section?

7. What is the nature of the illness from which Flannery suffers?

8. How does the reader know that the person known as "A" is an important one in Flannery's life?

9. In addition to the Fitzgeralds, Flannery and William Sessions have another friend in common--how does this friend make Flannery feel?

10. What information about writing fundamentals does Flannery share in the first letters in this section?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Flannery O'Connor had a delicious sense of humor and used it liberally. Note two examples of humor which appeal to you in her letters and state why you find them especially humorous.

Essay Topic 2

Sadness takes on an almost human persona in these letters. Why did O'Connor's letters have a hint of sadness? What is this literary technique called? Cite examples that support this position.

Essay Topic 3

Explain the role of women in the rural South in the mid-twentieth century. What precedents do they feel compelled to follow? What restrictions do they have? What freedoms did they have that 21st century women do not have? Why would Flannery both have fit in in rural Georgia while at the same time distinguishing herself there? Explain.

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This section contains 841 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample