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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 Janine now avoided in Chapter 8?

2. What do the guards in Chapter 1 have that nobody else does?

3. What is one way Offred is allowed to pass the time?

4. What do the Japanese want from the narrator in Chapter 2?

5. What kind of currency do the characters use to buy food in Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Chapter 4, What does the message in Offred’s room say?

2. What is the purpose of the exercises that Offred does?

3. If Luke is dead in Chapter 7, what happened to him?

4. Why does the narrator start thinking about Moira at night in Chapter 3?

5. What does Offred’s mother say about her father?

6. Who is the girl in the photograph in Chapter 3, and how does the narrator respond to seeing it?

7. How is Offred’s role different from that of the Commander’s Wife?

8. What is wrong with how Offred kisses the Commander, in his view?

9. How does the Commander act before and during the ceremony in Chapter 6?

10. In Chapter 6, how does the Commander pray?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Every other chapter in the book is entitled “Night”. Why might this be the case? How is Night significant for Offred, and what is it placed in contrast to?

Essay Topic 2

Offred finds comfort, and eventually salvation, through her relationship with Nick. How is Nick characterized? Why is he important? Compare/contrast him with the character of Luke.

Essay Topic 3

The title of the book, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” is deceptively simple. What are the multiple meanings of this title? Why might Gilead have chosen the word “Handmaid” to describe the role of these women, rather than something else?

(see the answer keys)

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