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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 was named the literary agent for the writings of Sylvia Plath after her death?

2. When did the Inquisition of the Roman Catholic Church begin?

3. How was Anne Stevenson viewed by the author and her peers while at the university?

4. Anne Stevenson tried to defend herself in her speech in Part Two: Chapter I by explaining that some of her work was tainted by the controlling hands of whom?

5. After she and Ted separated, Sylvia chose to stay in England because __________ was more accepted there.

Short Essay Questions

1. Aurelia Plath's intentions in having her daughter's letters published is implied to be in retaliation for what?

2. Describe the house Sylvia rented in London. What were her impressions of the residence?

3. What did Olwyn Hughes offer Anne Stevenson if she would write a biography about Sylvia?

4. What did Aurelia Plath have published regarding Sylvia after her death? Why?

5. What correspondence did Malcolm have with Olwyn Hughes in Part One: Chapter IV? What was illustrated through the letters?

6. How old were Sylvia and Ted when Sylvia died? How did she die?

7. What does Malcolm write of the power and struggle of the biographer in Part One: Chapter I?

8. How did Anne Stevenson find she related to Sylvia Plath in their youths?

9. What power did Olwyn Hughes have over the Plath Library? What was Malcolm's impression of her after working with her on the book?

10. What portrait of Sylvia Plath did Anne Stevenson paint in her biography of Sylvia? Why did critics refute that image?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss the relationship between Janet Malcolm and Anne Stevenson at the University of Michigan. When did Stevenson's writing career take off?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and analyze The Bell Jar and its depiction of Sylvia's relationship with her mother. What about the work did Aurelia find "ungrateful"?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the biography The Haunting of Sylvia Plath. When was it published and by whom?

(see the answer keys)

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