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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 the author claim art always has on its side?

2. When did Paul Broca die?

3. Who was the mother of Caliban in The Tempest?

4. Who fought in a duel with Catulle Mendes in 1901?

5. How old was Dr. Pozzi when Sargent painted him in the red coat?

Short Essay Questions

1. What caused the initial problems between Dr. Pozzi and his wife?

2. What does Des Esseintes tortoise symbolize?

3. Who was James Abbott McNeill Whistler?

4. What is known about Montesquiou's sexual exploits, according to the author?

5. When did the three Frenchmen arrive in London, according to the author's narrative in the opening of the book? Why were they there?

6. What painting inspired the author to write this book? Why?

7. What literary device does the author reference and explain in the opening of the narrative?

8. What is an aesthete?

9. What is a duel? What is its history?

10. Why was Oscar Wilde put on trial? What was the outcome?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the novel A Rebours. Why does this novel reappear frequently in The Man with the Red Coat? Who wrote the novel? What is it about?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss "dandyism." What was a dandy? How was a dandy different from an aesthete? How were they similar? Who were the most notable dandies at the time?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the American perspectives of the British and French during the time period of the Belle Époque. How did Americans respond to visits from Europeans like Wilde, Montesquiou, and Pozzi? What did they think of European royalty and aristocracy? How did they perceive the art and literature of Europe?

(see the answer keys)

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