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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. Lizzie reports that her "crankiest" (19) patrons are which people?

2. Margot tells Lizzie that her hair went gray the year that what other event occurred?

3. Lizzie cites a study asserting that how many of the world's richest billionaires own as many assets as half of humanity?

4. Henry worries about the meaning of a photograph of a man carrying his child on his back over how many miles?

5. Lizzie spends an hour reading about the dwindling numbers of what types of creatures?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the significance of Sylvia's explanation of the human response to applause in Chapter Two?

2. Who is Sylvia?

3. Discuss an instance when the motif of dreams enters the narrative of Chapter Two.

4. What time of year is it by the time Chapter One comes to a close?

5. What habit does Henry adopt when Catherine's due date draws near?

6. Discuss the demographics of Eli's school and how Lizzie feels about them.

7. Describe the protagonist's immediate family as depicted in Chapter One of Weather: A Novel.

8. For what reason does Lizzie go on fewer trips with Sylvia in the summer?

9. What is the significance of William Derham's 1711 quote, when viewed in the context of Sylvia's hope for the future?

10. Who is Mohan and what is he like?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the effects of stress on the novel's characters and the coping methods each character uses to deal with emotional turmoil. Which characters' methods are effective, which are ineffective, and how do these varying levels of efficiency affect the messages sent by Weather: A Novel within the text?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss Offill's messages about parenthood within the text Weather: A Novel.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss Offill’s messages concerning security and certainty. Does the text indicate that these elements are dangerous or crucial? Choose one adjective and prove its validity using concrete details from the text.

(see the answer keys)

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