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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. When did Paul Pozzi marry Miriam Ashcroft?

2. What does the author claim art always has on its side?

3. When did Leon Daudet fight his first duel?

4. When did Charles Meigs die?

5. Who said "Art is killed by taste" (57)?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the author compare the sexual perspectives of those from England and those from France in the late nineteenth century?

2. Who was Edmond de Goncourt?

3. What does the Belle Époque refer to?

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

5. What does Des Esseintes tortoise symbolize?

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

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

8. Who was Sarah Bernhardt and what role does she play in the narrative?

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

10. What is an aesthete?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the French perceptions of the British during the period of the Belle Époque. How did the French perceive British art and literature? How did they view the English morality? What did they esteem about the British?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the themes of family and infidelity in The Man in the Red Coat. How does the author develop these themes through his characterizations? How are they developed through action and setting? What symbols relate to these themes?

Essay Topic 3

Who was Edmond de Goncourt and why is he important in the narrative? What publications did Edmond de Goncourt publish? Who did he know among the elite circles of France?

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This section contains 665 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample