Print
Word
PDF
|
| Name: _________________________ | Period: ___________________ |
This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What has the competition found that allows them to undersell Silas Lapham?
2. With what does Persis Lapham worry Irene will wear herself out?
3. On what street do the Coreys live?
4. Who does Irene mention frequently in her letters from Dubuque?
5. To where does Silas Lapham take his wife and daughter in Chapter Twenty Two to cheer them all up?
Short Essay Questions
1. Describe how Silas Lapham confronts Milton Rogers in Chapter Twenty One and how Rogers responds to that confrontation.
2. What new business proposition does Milton Rogers bring Silas Lapham in Chapter Twenty Five?
3. How do the Laphams react to the dinner invitation from the aristocratic Coreys?
4. Describe the Civil War experiences Silas Lapham relates to the other guests at the Coreys' dinner party.
5. Describe Silas Lapham's interactions with Zerrilla Dewey and her mother, Moll Millon, in Chapter Twenty Three.
6. Why do the Coreys decide to invite the Laphams to dinner if they don't really like them?
7. What destroys Silas Lapham's new house and how does that situation add to Lapham's financial woes?
8. Who is Mr. Sewell and what does he suggest that Silas and Persis Lapham do about the situation between their daughters and Tom Corey?
9. What is written on the scrap of paper Persis Lapham retrieves when her husband drops it and what is Silas Lapham's explanation for the paper?
10. What opinion does Penelope Lapham give Tom Corey about the novel Tears, Idle Tears?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Tears, Idle Tears is a novel that a number of characters, including Tom Corey and Penelope Lapham, read in the Rise of Silas Lapham. Discuss how the plot and characters of Tears, Idle Tears mirrors or parallels the course of Tom and Penelope's own romance. Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.
Essay Topic 2
Silas Lapham is the protagonist of the story, and Rogers is the antagonist of the story. Compare and contrast the characters of Lapham and Rogers. In what ways is Rogers a foil character for Lapham? Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.
Essay Topic 3
Discuss the concept of social class in The Rise of Silas Lapham. Give examples of how at least three of the following characters exhibit typical or atypical behavior for their social class in the era in which the novel is set: Silas Lapham, Persis Lapham, Anna Corey, Nanny Corey, Tom Corey, Penelope Lapham, Zerrilla Dewey, Moll Millon, and Milton Rogers. What do you think William Dean Howells is trying to say about social class in the Gilded Age through these characters? Cite examples from the text to support your arguments.
|
This section contains 1,002 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
|
