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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 Thatcher go to Mrs. Treat's home for the first time in Chapter 4?

2. What is Willa's last name?

3. Who is the social worker who suggested Willa look into getting the family on Medicaid in Chapter 9?

4. What is Willa's profession?

5. Where is the home located that Willa's family has inherited?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is Mary upset when Thatcher comes to pay a visit in Chapter 6?

2. What has Thatcher learned about the house in Chapter 2? Why does this news distress him?

3. How would you describe Thatcher's relationship with Rose in the beginning of the novel?

4. What is Willa's profession and how has it recently changed at the opening of the novel?

5. How did Willa obtain the house her family has moved into? How is the house described?

6. What renovations/repairs are being made to Willa's home in Chapter 3? Why?

7. How is the setting of Batsto described in Chapter 8?

8. How do Willa and Nick's political views and outlooks differ?

9. What is the significance of the names Scylla and Charybdis in the novel?

10. How is Gwendolyn described? What are Willa's first impressions of her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the symbolism of the trees in the novel. In addition to the two trees in the yard at the house on Plum Street, what others appear? What do you think the trees represent? With what type of tree does Thatcher associate Mary? Why is this significant?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the character of Mary Treat in Unsheltered. Where is Mary from? What are her circumstances when her character is first introduced in the novel? How do those circumstances change? How does Mary stand apart from the other women in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the relationship between Willa and Iano in the novel. For how long have they been married? Has their marriage been a happy one? What have been their struggles in the past? Does their relationship grow or change in the course of the narrative? If so, how?

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