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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. In the letter of July 6, to what does Werther compare a child washing her hands?

2. What is the name of Werther's new female acquaintance?

3. What subject do Werther and Lotte discuss at length in the letter of September 10?

4. How does the main character view his business affairs turning out?

5. What does Werther give the people he meets in the town square?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Werther perceive his relation to the commoners of the village?

2. Who is Albert, and what is Werther's reaction to learning about him?

3. What example does Werther give Albert regarding the justifiability of suicide, and why does Werther take the standpoint he does?

4. How has Werther's life or attitudes changed after falling in love with Lotte?

5. What is Werther's opinion of his aunt?

6. What does Werther mourn in the letter of May 17, 1771?

7. What "worthy man" has Werther gotten to know, and where does he live?

8. What is the substance of the conversation between Werther and his companions at the vicar's home?

9. How is Werther first received by the commoners of the village, and how does Werther view their reaction to him?

10. To what does Werther compare Lotte's influence on him in the letter of July 26, and what the effects of her influence upon him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the little peasant family that Werther meets in Wahlheim and subsequently gets to know: the mother and her several children, including Hans. What is the little family's story? What attracts them to Werther? How does he interact with them? How is his relationship with them symbolic of a relationship between social classes at large? What might the symbolism be when their inheritance falls through, and when Hans dies? What is the effect of their tragedy on Werther? What about their fate of poverty is significant to the major themes of the novel?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the characters of Albert and Werther. Consider their personalities, the tone in which they speak, and general character development. Although they appear to be polar opposites, are there any ways in which they are similar? Closely analyze the letter of August 12, 1771, in which the two men speak on the subject of suicide and other crimes. What does this letter reveal about their characters, personalities, values and views? What about each man attracts Lotte to him?

Essay Topic 3

Consider the theme of religion, God, Fate and the divine in the novel. Where, and in which situations, does Werther feel the presence or absence of God? Is there anything overtly, or covertly, religious or spiritual about the novel as a whole? Why does Werther feel, at times, both connected to and disconnected from God? What ambiguities does Werther confront, or ignore, about his passion for Lotte and the sinfulness or morality of it? How does Werther view Fate, and why might having a fated destiny be significant to considerations of the morality of Werther's end? How does Werther view Lotte in religious terms, and why does he seem to do so?

(see the answer keys)

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