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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. Why does Esther visit the cemetery?

2. How does the shock treatment make Esther feel?

3. What complaint do all of the patients at the hospital have of Esther's volunteer work?

4. Where does Esther wake up at the start of this chapter?

5. What treasure does Esther take with her to solitary confinement?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the only item that gives Esther pleasure in the hospital? Why?

2. Describe Esther's feelings as she visits the gynecologist.

3. What does Dr. Nolan tell Esther to help her feel better about Joan's death?

4. What does Esther do at Deer Island?

5. How does the private hospital staff compare to those at the public hospital?

6. Characterize Esther's behavior in the psychiatric wards of the hospitals

7. Describe Esther's feelings about the women living in Belsize

8. What does Dr. Nolan tell Esther about shock treatments in this chapter?

9. How is Esther's shock treatment experience at the private hospital different than the one she had with Dr. Gordon?

10. What do the voices in Esther's head tell her as she sits in the park contemplating suicide?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At the end of The Bell Jar, Esther is about to be released from the asylum. Write an essay discussing:

1) whether or not she is ready to leave the hospital

2) what the future holds for her

3) how you think she'll do in the "real world".

Use specific examples from the novel to come up with and support your ideas.

Essay Topic 2

The Bell Jar is often considered a "coming of age" story. In your essay:

1) describe Esther's journey from adolescence into adulthood

2) describe and comment on the events in her life that help her transition between adolescence and adulthood

3) discuss how successful her transition was. Is she an adult at the end of the novel? Why or why not?

Be sure to cite specific examples from the novel to support your ideas.

Essay Topic 3

The Bell Jar is written from Esther's first person point of view. Write an essay examining the novel's point of view focusing on:

1) the narrator's bias

2) the amount of information given based on this point of view

3) comment on how the novel would be different if it was told from a different point of view.

Cite several specific examples from the novel to support your ideas.

(see the answer keys)

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