Consider the role of Ruth throughout the story. How does she show more understanding and aptitude than her family acknowledges? Ruth provides comfort for whoever is in need by an unexpected gesture. How does her revelation that she was jealous of everyone in the Prologue change the reader's perception of her throughout the story?

The imp is an elusive figure that reappears at various points in the novel. Iris suspects Clara may be the imp due to her secretive and strange ways. Henrika appears to be the imp as she runs the household and doggedly controls her husband since their money comes from her inheritance. Next, Margarethe shows herself so capable of scheming and foul play that Iris thinks she must be the imp that causes so much grief and trouble in the van den Meer household. Iris feels the imp is in her...