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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 1: "The Marry Month of May".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is comic about the turn of phrase "she withstood the attack of the ethereal mildness" (334)?
(a) The idea that "mildness" could be "ethereal."
(b) The contradiction in the terms "attack" and "ethereal mildness."
(c) The surprise ending to a well-known phrase.
(d) The understatement of the danger.

2. What is implied by Mr. Coulson's mention of Palm Beach?
(a) He does not want Mrs. Widdup to go away on vacation.
(b) He dislikes New York.
(c) He misses his friends in Palm Beach.
(d) He spends the winter in Palm Beach.

3. When the author compares May to Circe and explains the comparison at length, what literary technique is he using?
(a) Hyperbole.
(b) Anaphora.
(c) Synechdoche.
(d) Conceit.

4. When Mr. Coulson complains about the cold, what is his servant's response?
(a) He shuts the windows.
(b) He offers to investigate the problem.
(c) He laughs.
(d) He calls for Mrs. Widdup.

5. What claim is the narrator making by calling humans "lineal scions of the pansy" (332)?
(a) Plants and animals are just as valuable as humans.
(b) Humans are the servants of nature.
(c) Humans and flowers are related through evolution.
(d) Pansies are more like humans than most people realize.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Mrs. Widdup's job?

2. Why does Miss Coulson ask when Mrs. Widdup's vacation begins?

3. What does Miss Coulson's believe about love?

4. What is implied by the number of days for which Miss Coulson orders extra ice?

5. What is the purpose of the allusion to the "virgin of Cologne" (334)?

(see the answer key)

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