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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 does Clarissa say might be a good omen?

2. What does Virginia imagine appearing as a jellyfish?

3. When does Virginia say a person feels free to do anything?

4. What are Virginia and Marjorie doing when Vanessa arrives?

5. Which novel is Laura Brown reading?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are Laura's feelings about her son?

2. What is significant about the kiss Laura gives to Kitty?

3. What is Virginia's attitude toward Vanessa's children?

4. Why is Laura fearful of Richie making an error as he helps her make the cake?

5. What is significant about Vanessa's visit to Hogarth House?

6. What is unusual about the headache Virginia suffers?

7. What sets a favorable writing mindset for Virginia Woolf in this chapter?

8. For what reasons has Virginia Woolf decided to end her life?

9. How does Laura attempt to achieve perfection?

10. What is significant about Oliver St. Ives?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Is Richard Worthington Brown's death a tragedy? You need to consider the nature of tragedy as well as the illness Richard suffered.

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the tension between commitment and freedom in the lives of the characters in Michael Cunningham's The Hours. Focus particularly on two major characters and one minor one.

Essay Topic 3

There are numerous interpersonal tensions running through all sections of Michael Cunningham's The Hours. Discuss two of these interpersonal tensions. Are they resolved during the novel? How do they affect the characters who are involved? How are these tensions associated with the themes and/or symbols that are important in the novel?

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