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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. How does Miss Coulson spend the afternoon after her conversation with her father about the cold?

2. What is implied by Mr. Coulson's mention of Palm Beach?

3. Why does Mrs. Widdup go into Mr. Coulson's room in the afternoon on the second day of the story?

4. Who is the author of "The Marry Month of May"?

5. On the final morning of the story, what causes Mr. Coulson's mood to change?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the rhetorical purpose of the allusions to Puck and Circe?

2. What is Miss Coulson's plan to head off her father's budding romance?

3. What is the significance of the sound of the overturned chair after Mr. Coulson confesses his feelings to Mrs. Widdup?

4. When Mr. Coulson comments that the spring weather is "lovely," his daughter replies "That's just it" (334). What does she mean by her reply?

5. Explain the titular allusion and the allusion to "the poet" in the first sentence of the story.

6. What rhetorical purposes does O. Henry accomplish with his introduction of Mr. Coulson through a list of things that he "has," like gout, money, and a daughter?

7. How does O. Henry use verbal misunderstandings to characterize Mrs. Widdup when she first appears in Mr. Coulson's room?

8. How does O. Henry characterize the month of May?

9. What happens when Mrs. Widdup makes an excuse to go into Mr. Coulson's room to speak with him after the ice is delivered?

10. What is the thematic significance of the olfactory image of the city in springtime?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Make and defend a claim about the purpose of O. Henry's allusions in "The Marry Month of May." Use both paraphrased and quoted textual evidence to support your claim.

Essay Topic 2

Make and defend a claim about O. Henry's "The Marry Month of May" as an example of American Naturalism. Support your ideas with evidence from the text; if you use outside sources, be sure to cite them in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explore the beliefs about marriage revealed in "The Marry Month of May." Give textual support for your claims.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,098 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample