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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the implication of the passage "She blushed. Oh, yes, it can be done. Just hold your breath and compress the diaphragm" (333)?
(a) Mrs. Widdup may be faking her reaction to Mr. Coulson.
(b) Most people blush on purpose.
(c) Blushing happens when the diaphragm is contracted too forcefully.
(d) In her excitement, Mrs. Widdup can barely breathe.

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

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

4. Why does Miss Coulson ask when Mrs. Widdup's vacation begins?
(a) She is hoping to get away from the house for a while, herself.
(b) She is eager to get Mrs. Widdup away from Mr. Coulson.
(c) She is wondering if Mr. Coulson will try to go away with Mrs. Widdup.
(d) She will need to make arrangements for Mr. Coulson's care.

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

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

7. When Mr. Coulson is irritated, he complains that no one in the house does what?
(a) Cares if he lives or dies.
(b) Attempts to entertain him.
(c) Listens to him when he speaks.
(d) Responds when he rings for a servant.

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

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

10. Which bird is Mr. Coulson said to be "elder brother" to in May?
(a) Turtle-dove.
(b) Robin.
(c) Chickadee.
(d) Pigeon.

11. On the final morning of the story, what causes Mr. Coulson's mood to change?
(a) It is warm again and the windows are open.
(b) He is in much less pain than usual.
(c) Mrs. Widdup has threatened to quit.
(d) Miss Coulson has told him that he is behaving badly.

12. Why is Mr. Coulson so clumsy on the afternoon after the ice is delivered?
(a) He is angry at Miss Coulson's meddling.
(b) He is frustrated that he has not yet been able to confess his feelings to Mrs. Widdup.
(c) He is upset because of the cold.
(d) He is nervous about speaking to Mrs. Widdup.

13. Whom does the narrator refer to as "the venerable and scarcely suspecting victim of May" (334)?
(a) Miss Coulson.
(b) The iceman.
(c) Mrs. Widdup.
(d) Mr. Coulson.

14. When "May holds up a chiding finger," (332), what is May's intention?
(a) To indicate the "first" of something.
(b) To indicate a direction.
(c) To scold.
(d) To indicate a pause.

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

Short Answer Questions

1. After the iceman tells Miss Coulson, "It'll be a pleasure to fix things up for you any way you please," the narrator comments "Alas for May" (334). What is implied by this comment?

2. When the author compares May to Circe and explains the comparison at length, what literary technique is he using?

3. Miss Coulson has a "lorgnette" (334). What is a lorgnette?

4. How old is Mrs. Widdup?

5. How many years apart are Miss Coulson's and Mrs. Widdup's ages?

(see the answer keys)

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