View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Miss Coulson has a "lorgnette" (334). What is a lorgnette?
(a) Glasses that have a handle instead of ear-pieces.
(b) A high-necked, long-sleeved sweater.
(c) A piece of jewelry used to hold a scarf or shawl closed.
(d) A round, flat case designed to hold medications or tobacco.

2. What does the narrator call the "most potent weapons of insidious May" (334)?
(a) Birds.
(b) Sunny days.
(c) Flowers.
(d) Warm breezes.

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

4. What is the first indication that Mrs. Widdup does not listen carefully?
(a) She interrupts Mr. Coulson when he is speaking.
(b) She thinks that Mr. Coulson is telling her about his feelings for another woman.
(c) She does not respond to the question that Mr. Coulson asks her.
(d) She does not pay attention to how much medication she is supposed to give Mr. Coulson.

5. How much ice does Miss Coulson order be delivered each day?
(a) 2,000 pounds.
(b) 1,000 pounds.
(c) 500 pounds.
(d) 250 pounds.

6. Where does Miss Coulson meet the iceman on the next morning?
(a) In the basement.
(b) In the park across from the house.
(c) In the kitchen.
(d) In the vacant lot next door.

7. When Miss Coulson stands thinking at the window, to what insects does she mentally compare Mr. Coulson and Mrs. Widdup?
(a) Mosquitoes.
(b) Fleas.
(c) Mayflies.
(d) Cockroaches.

8. What kind of clam is a "chowder-doomed clam" (332)?
(a) One that is personified as feeling worried.
(b) One that is poisonous to humans.
(c) One that is destined to be eaten in soup.
(d) One that is confused by its surroundings.

9. Mrs. Widdup is described as "comely" (333). What does this mean is true about her?
(a) She is funny.
(b) She is a hard worker.
(c) She is clever.
(d) She is attractive.

10. Where Mr. Coulson is sitting, two main smells are "battling": the smell of flowers and what other smell?
(a) Mr. Coulson's uneaten breakfast.
(b) The musty smell of Mr. Coulson's room.
(c) The medicine on Mr. Coulson's skin.
(d) Mr. Coulson's strong cologne.

11. What is clear in the first interaction between Mr. Coulson, Miss Coulson, and Mrs. Widdup?
(a) Mrs. Widdup is much more intelligent than she seems at first.
(b) Both Mr. Coulson and Mrs. Widdup are aware that Miss Coulson will disapprove of them having a relationship.
(c) Mr. Coulson is used to having to trick Miss Coulson in order to get his way.
(d) Miss Coulson has no idea that Mr. Coulson has romantic intentions toward Mrs. Widdup.

12. What information does Mrs. Widdup give Mr. Coulson that contradicts what Miss Coulson told him earlier?
(a) She tells him that Miss Coulson has had a very large ice order delivered.
(b) She tells him that Miss Coulson is upstairs sleeping.
(c) She tells him that it is warm outside.
(d) She tells him that his manservant has gone to the post office.

13. What is implied about Miss Coulson when she looks at the flowers "with the eye of a botanist" (334)?
(a) She is curious.
(b) She is thinking of cutting them down.
(c) She is very intelligent.
(d) She is logical and unemotional.

14. When Mr. Coulson continues quoting the poem and mentions "a livelier iris," what does Mrs. Widdup think he is talking about? (333)
(a) Eyes.
(b) The Irish.
(c) Flowers.
(d) A bird.

15. Which of the following literary techniques is used in the title "The Marry Month of May"?
(a) Paraprosdokian.
(b) Paronomasia.
(c) Synecdoche.
(d) Anaphora.

Short Answer Questions

1. When Mr. Coulson asks for his "aconite," what is he asking for (333)?

2. When Mr. Coulson complains about the cold, what is his servant's response?

3. Which neighborhood does Mr. Coulson live in?

4. What is Mrs. Widdup's job?

5. On page 334, the narrator refers to the "panoply" of Miss Coulson's "unthrilled bosom." What is the meaning of "panoply" in this context?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 667 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample