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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 word is repeatedly used to describe the day on which the story opens?

2. What is the purpose of including the details about how many people Miss Strangeworth talks to on her trip to the grocery store?

3. What kind of flowers does Miss Strangeworth send to the church for the celebration of the new minister's arrival?

4. When Miss Strangeworth gets home from the grocery store, why does she not have the cup of tea she thinks about having?

5. When Miss Strangeworth is walking "daintily" along Main Street, (417), how is she walking?

Short Essay Questions

1. What details in the story let the reader know that Miss Strangeworth herself does not believe some of the accusations she is making?

2. What does the green letter at the end of the story say, and what does it imply?

3. What does Miss Strangeworth write to Mrs. Foster about her upcoming surgery, and what is she implying?

4. What does Miss Strangeworth write to Mrs. Harper, and what is she implying?

5. Describe Miss Strangeworth's relationship with Tommy Lewis.

6. Describe the setting of the story "The Possibility of Evil."

7. Describe Miss Strangeworth's feelings about her roses.

8. What details does Jackson provide about the interior of Miss Strangeworth's house to show the pride the family has always taken in the house?

9. What is ironic about Miss Strangeworth's thoughts as she notices that various townspeople seem distressed?

10. What evidence is there in the story that Miss Strangeworth is well-known and respected in the town?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about the significance of Miss Strangeworth being the last of the Strangeworths. Support your claims with evidence from the text.

Essay Topic 2

"The Possibility of Evil" is studded with words like "graceful" and "dainty." Write an essay that explores the significance of this aspect of the story's diction. Support your claims with direct quotations from the story.

Essay Topic 3

Certainly, Miss Strangeworth's behavior is extreme and cruel. But is Miss Strangeworth the only person in town who gossips and spreads rumors? Write an essay that makes a claim about the purpose of including details like the townspeople gossiping about Linda Stewart and the rumor about the tourist mistaking Miss Strangeworth's home for a museum. Support your claim with textual evidence.

(see the answer keys)

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