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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. In what type of abode do Henry and Catherine live with Iris?

2. Henry keeps the scraps of paper describing his horrific visions in what type of container?

3. Lizzie officially meets the handsome man from the bus when they run into one another in what location?

4. In meditation class in Chapter Three, Margot talks about the difference between which two actions?

5. Which character tries to convince Lizzie that she will be unable to save her family in the face of the destruction caused by climate change?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain the significance of Lizzie's claim at the end of Chapter Four that she has "so many people" (192).

2. For what reason does Lizzie begin to skip meditation classes with Margot?

3. What drastic step does Sylvia decide to take in Chapter Four?

4. For what reason does Offill allude to C.S. Lewis's novel Prince Caspian in Chapter Four?

5. How does Sylvia react when Lizzie shares her plans for creating a 'doomstead' for her family someday?

6. What do the keys featured in Chapter Three symbolize?

7. For what reason are Ben and Will away from home for three weeks during Chapter Four?

8. For what reason does Lizzie stay home during the three weeks of Ben and Eli's absence in Chapter Four?

9. What is "milling" (129) in the context of the field called Disaster Psychology?

10. In what way does Offill use the character of Lorraine to demonstrate the frustration felt by many Americans in the wake of the 2016 election?

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

Sensory details are used frequently by Offill in order to create vivid pictures of each character's progression through the narrative of Weather: A Novel. Choose three scenes in which sensory details are heavily used and discuss how the sensory details used serve Offill’s creation of vivid characters to populate the narrative.

Essay Topic 3

Examine Offill’s use of characterization methods to portray Lizzie’s brother Henry within the narrative. What effects do these characterization methods have on the themes and messages inherent in Weather: A Novel?

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