View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. On their second date, what does the Queen of Spades ask Villanelle to do?

2. What happens to the knife when the midwife tries to cut apart Villanelle´s toes?

3. What test does the recruiting officer give Henri to determine his position in the army?

4. What does the narrator say Napoleon has a passion for?

5. What does Henri say his village does at the end of every winter?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Part 1, what does Henri say the Blind peddler tells him about the Dark? What happens to this peddler?

2. What does Bonaparte do to Henri to show his approval when he hears about Henri and the cook? What does he say about Henri's idea?

3. What does the Queen of Spades leave for Villanelle at the gaming table? What is the item made out of?

4. What does the waiter bring Villanelle while she is waiting for work? Who does she see soon after?

5. What makes Henri uncomfortable at church? What does he consider his stigmata?

6. According to legend, what does a boatsmen´s wife do when she is pregnant? What is she supposed to wish for?

7. When the little village girl asks Henri who he will kill, what does he reply? How does he clarify this for her?

8. How many hands tall is Napoleon's horse? Why could no stable boy last?

9. In Henri's story about the man who thought himself an inventor, why did the man go to town for a few months, leaving his family? Who seemed to hold the man together?

10. Why did Henri's mother want to run away when she was young? How does Henri say his father won her over?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The relationship between the two narrators is a central theme in The Passion. Write an essay about the relationship between Villanelle and Henri from both sides, as Winterson does. How is their love impossible?

Essay Topic 2

In The Passion, Villanelle tells a story about two men who bet their lives against each other. Write an essay on the theme of "The stakes of life" in the novel, using Villanelle's story as a background to your argument. Make sure you use at least 2 examples that mirror Villanelle's story.

Essay Topic 3

Winterson uses nature and the earth's elements often in the novel. Choose 3 elements prevalent in the novel and write an essay on their usage and importance to the story.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 768 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample