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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 two forms of speech does Cecilia forbid Ned from using while they are on their way into the hotel?

2. Whose butler has stolen her house?

3. What unusual weapon did Mrs. Rotunder employ in her recent assassination attempt against Miss Darlington?

4. What technique is used when the title of Chapter 5 mentions "The End of Wuthering Heights" (45)?

5. Where is Cecilia's mother?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is really happening as Cecilia views herself as "calm, impassive, undisturbed by fears" at dinner?

2. What is paradoxical about Lady Armitage's attitude toward Cecilia in Chapter 2?

3. What is the history of Cecilia's relationship with Jane Fairweather?

4. What kind of a relationship do Ned and Alex seem to have, and how does the reader know this?

5. Whom does Oply spend the Chapter 6 Wisteria Society meeting telling Cecilia about, and whom does this man turn out to be in Chapter 7?

6. What are the two competing stories that Ned has heard about Morvath's marriage to Cilla?

7. What does Cecilia hope will happen when she tells the Wisteria Society women about Lady Armitage's assassination attempt, and what actually happens?

8. How is Miss Darlington's Chapter 4 reaction to Cecilia walking two miles typical of her treatment of Cecilia in general?

9. What is unusual about Pleasance's mental state?

10. In Chapter 4, why does Miss Darlington suddenly bring the house into town to pick up Cecilia?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Consider the symbolic potential of the flying houses in The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels. How do the rules of propriety especially limit the lives of middle- and upper-class women in this text? What are some of the ways in which their flying houses give the pirate women a kind of freedom other women of their social standing lack? Why flying houses as opposed to flying ships--or just regular ships? Write an essay that takes and defends a position about the symbol of flying houses in The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels, considering these questions as well as any others you think are relevant. Offer evidence from the text to support your claims.

Essay Topic 2

How does The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels both parody and pay homage to the Victorian Gothic novel? Write an essay that first uses research from outside sources to establish the conventions of the Victorian Gothic--its typical language, plot, characters, and settings. Then, write a section that shows how The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels pays homage to these conventions. Finally, conclude your essay with a section that shows how The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels parodies some of these same conventions. Offer both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the novel to support your claims; be sure to cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you analyze Pleasance's character. How is she characterized? How do other characters treat her? What does this say about the other characters? What messages are being conveyed about servants through her character? How does her character both support and undermine the idea that class hierarchies are natural and just? Support your claims with evidence from the text.

(see the answer keys)

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