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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. What does the app the women find on Winnie's phone do?

2. What does Lowell think Francie is spending too much time doing?

3. When Chapter Ten opens, what is Francie reading about online?

4. What news does Colette reveal to the May Mothers at the park in Chapter Two?

5. What is the name of the person that the first-person narrator keeps thinking about in the Prologue?

Short Essay Questions

1. When Colette takes the Midas file for the second time, what does she see that links her to the case and what does she do with it?

2. How does Bodhi Mogaro's attorney explain away the evidence against Mogaro?

3. How do the Prologue and Chapter One characterize the narrator?

4. How does Chapter One hint at trouble in the narrator's childhood?

5. In Chapter Five, why are the police being criticized for their handling of Midas's case?

6. What does Francie remember about Mr. Colburn, her high school science teacher?

7. While Colette is out running in Chapter Eight, what source of comfort is she wishing for, and why can she not get it?

8. What does Colette discover on the mayor's desk, and what does she do with it?

9. What is Nell's theory about Token, and why does Colette believe Nell is probably mistaken?

10. What do the Prologue and Chapter One make clear was the father's reaction to the narrator's pregnancy, and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Now that you have finished the book, you are aware of the sequence of events that led Scarlett to kidnap Midas and what Scarlett hoped would be the result of her actions. How does this relate to Midas's name? What elements of the King Midas story do you see reflected in Scarlett's choices and their outcomes? In the original story, the audience is meant to judge King Midas for his greed and lack of forethought--but does Molloy seem to be encouraging her reader to judge Scarlett in this way? What mitigating effect does Scarlett's state of mind have on the reader's judgment of her? How do the social pressures on women that this book explores provide an additional mitigating factor? Write an essay in which you explore how Molloy intends the reader to interpret the allusion to King Midas. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text; be sure to cite any quoted evidence and evidence drawn from outside sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

What is Molloy's purpose in pointing out that adverse circumstances like the kidnapping of a child can cause a flare-up in anti-immigrant ideas? How is this thematic motif in The Perfect Mother related to the book's concerns with perspective-taking and judgment of others in general? How is this motif related to the book's concerns with the marginalization of women? Write an essay in which you consider how The Perfect Mother's status as a domestic thriller makes it ideally suited for exploring how adverse, high-intensity circumstances differentially impact marginalized groups. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text; be sure to cite any quoted evidence in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

What message about the importance of perspective is conveyed in The Perfect Mother? How do the novel's multiple narrative points-of-view and perspectives contribute to this message? How do the characterizations of Scarlett, Francie, Colette, and Nell contribute? What role does the non-chronological opening play in reinforcing this message? How is this message related to the ironic counterpoint between the newsletters and the main text? How is it related to the dichotomy between the public's perception of the police and politicians and Molloy's characterization of actual officers and politicians in the text? What other elements of the novel support the novel's thematic concern with perspective-taking? Write an essay that analyzes how several elements of the novel work together to convey a message about perspective. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text; be sure to cite any quoted evidence in MLA format.

(see the answer keys)

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