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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. Why does Hazel purchase the bottles of veronal?

2. Why hasn't Garry sent flowers to Mona?

3. What gift does the narrator give to the six soldiers as they leave?

4. What secret does the narrator in "Second Love" keep from her lover?

5. What excuse does the narrator suggest would have been better to explain Mona's "illness"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the narrator of "Lady With a Lamp" make Mona feel worse rather than better?

2. What is the cause of Mr. and Mrs. Weldon's divorce in the short story "Too Bad"?

3. Compare the poems "Bric-A-Brac," "Fulfillment," and "Theory." What do these poems have in common?

4. Compare the poems "Star Light, Star Bright--" and "Purposely Ungrammatical Love Song." How are they similar?

5. Describe the narrator's tone in the story "Just a Little One."

6. Explain the allusions in the poem "Guinevere At Her Fireside."

7. How does Hazel Morse lose her own identity in her efforts to please others in the short story "Big Blonde"?

8. Explain the allusions in the poem "Prayer for a New Mother."

9. Describe Mr. Cruger's attitude toward his daughter in the story "Horsie."

10. How does the resolution of "Big Blonde" illustrate that Hazel's troubles are recurrent cycle?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Suicide plays a recurring role in many of Dorothy Parker's poems and in some short stories. Examine the role that suicide plays in both her poetry and her short stories. What seems to be her attitude toward suicide and those who attempt or commit it? What circumstances drive characters toward suicide? How do these details compare to Parker's own life? How might her own experiences have influenced her writing?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the theme of lost love in Dorothy Parker's poetry. How consistent or common is this theme? What do the poems reveal about Parker's attitude toward love, in particular lost love? Be sure to include specific examples and quotations to support your observations.

Essay Topic 3

Abortion is a word that does not appear in Dorothy Parker's writing, yet it appears as a motif in several of her stories. Analyze the way in which Parker deals with this taboo in her stories. How does she introduce the topic? How does she make this detail clear to the reader? How does the event affect the characters involved? What do the stories reveal about Parker's perspective on abortion and how it affects the men and women involved?

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