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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. Who does Nell end up calling after she abruptly ends the call to Hoyt?

2. Where is the narrator during Chapter Fifteen?

3. What did the press call Nell during the Raine scandal?

4. What is Token's real first name?

5. What causes Scarlett to stab Colette?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the scandal that disrupted Nell's life many years ago?

2. What frightening event happens while Colette is on the subway, and how does she react?

3. Where did Token get the papers that he gives to Falk, and how have his intentions regarding these papers shifted since he gained possession of them?

4. What are the implications of the papers that Francie finds in Scarlett's desk drawer?

5. In Chapter Fourteen, what causes Colette to jump to the conclusion that Midas is dead?

6. In Chapter Thirteen, what confusion does Nell express about her mental state on the night of July 4th?

7. What is ironic about Nell's boss's attitude when he is asking Nell about the magazine cover?

8. When Colette and Nell see Winnie's interview with the police, what causes them to worry about Winnie's mental health?

9. What item is delivered to all three women--Nell, Francie, and Colette--and what does it contain?

10. In Chapter Fifteen, what promise does the narrator remember making and then immediately breaking?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Which conventions of the domestic thriller does Molloy observe? Which does she ignore or even actively subvert? How do these choices impact the reader? What messages might Molloy be trying to convey through these choices? Write an essay in which you consider the expectations a reader has of domestic thrillers and what Molloy accomplishes through fulfilling some of these expectations but not others. 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

Molloy's novel introduces readers to women from strikingly different walks of life, with strikingly different personalities, and posits that they would all have similar difficulty adjusting to motherhood. How realistic is this message? What research-supported evidence is there about women's adjustment to motherhood and the difficulty of taking care of a newborn's needs? What does research show about the differential impacts of parenthood on women versus men? Is this picture changing in modern times, or does parenthood continue to impact women in different ways than it impacts men? Write an essay that considers how accurately Molloy's novel depicts the most common experiences of new mothers in our society. 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 3

In The Perfect Mother, both police and politicians are subjected to criticism from the media and the public. In what sense do the characterizations of Teb Shepherd and Mark Hoyt dispute the public's judgment? What does the eventual revelation of Nell's past involvement with Lachlan Raine contribute to the novel's portrait of politicians? How do the media and public reactions to Raine complicate the novel's picture of the public perception of politicians? Are politicians in this novel being judged more harshly than the police are? Write an essay that analyzes the novel's perspective on politicians and the police. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from throughout the text; be sure to cite any quoted evidence in MLA format.

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