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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 does Margaret confess to Albany one night?

2. Where is James when Margaret becomes ill at the end of the novel?

3. What does Margaret admire about Albany and his wife?

4. How old is James's wife?

5. What is the age relationship between Margaret and Harry?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mary say about how she would have reacted if she were Margaret to Angus's abandonment of her?

2. Why does Margaret object to James's request for a divorce for his lover when she herself had a request granted?

3. What does Albany know will happen when he starts courting Margaret?

4. Why does Margaret think Harry is the ideal mate?

5. What dampers Margaret's excitement about returning to England?

6. Why are people afraid to oppose James when he demands that Parliament recognize him as king?

7. Why do the servants eventually let James walk away from his imprisonment?

8. How does James Hamilton make Margaret feel?

9. Why does James disagree with his mother about his divorce request?

10. Why does the French king allow Albany to remain in France after Margaret returns to England?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Several of Margaret's children die in the novel. Discuss the effect this has on the reader, how these deaths have an influence on the sequence of events, and how these deaths influence Margaret as both a person and a ruler.

Essay Topic 2

Several battles play a key role in "The Thistle and the Rose." Discuss at least three challenges an author faces when writing battle scenes and at least three literary devices Plaidy uses when writing about battle in "The Thistle and the Rose," using examples from the text as supporting evidence.

Essay Topic 3

Parents, such as Henry's and Margaret's and even James's, are presented as complicated characters in "The Thistle and the Rose." Discuss how parents are portrayed in "The Thistle and the Rose" as well as what message Plaidy is trying to convey to the reader about the power and influence of parents over the main characters in the text.

(see the answer keys)

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