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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. In Part 2, Chapter 3, what is Fred eating when Mariana sees him?

2. Where did Mariana grow up?

3. How did Mariana's father die?

4. What does Conrad call Tara's mates?

5. In Chapter 10, what color geraniums enliven the redbrick college walls?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Mariana realize she is going to need to deal with Henry when she returns home?

2. What does Fred tell Mariana about Fosca in Part 2, Chapter 18?

3. Why do The Maidens say that they wore white to Tara's memorial service?

4. What does Mariana learn about the postcard she found in Tara's room from Clarissa?

5. What does Mariana remember about the days and nights after Sebastian died?

6. What does the journal writer remember that he and his mother would do when it was slaughtering time at the farm?

7. What are "bedders" (103)?

8. How long has it been since Sebastian died, and why is it difficult for Mariana to be at Cambridge?

9. In Part 2, Chapter 9, what does Mariana remember about the first time Zoe met Sebastian?

10. Where did Mariana grow up?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

There are frequent references to Greek tragedies in the book. How and why does Michaelides incorporate elements of Greek tragedies in The Maidens? How is the book structured in some ways like a Greek tragedy?

Essay Topic 2

The journal writer (Sebastian) sees times in his life that led him to learn how to hate. What are some turning points in Sebastian’s life? How did those incidents affect the man he became?

Essay Topic 3

Clarissa tells Mariana to read “In Memoriam A.H.H.” by Tennyson. Why does Clarissa tell Marissa to read the poem? Does the poem help Mariana with her grief?

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