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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. Before any guests arrive to Jude and Willem's party, what action does Jude take?

2. Who insists that Willem cannot just stop talking to his parents?

3. Jude's very first home was in what type of location?

4. How did Jude pay for college?

5. Who is Julia?

Short Essay Questions

1. In what way does the narration of Part I: Lispenard Street differ from the narration of Part II: The Postman?

2. In what way is the theme of acquiescence included in the first part of A Little Life?

3. What is the occasion of the opening scene in A Little Life?

4. Characterize the priests' attitudes about Jude's pursuit of knowledge about his own past.

5. What is the significance of the title for Part II, "The Postman" (210)?

6. How does the theme of regret appear within A Little Life?

7. What do the coupons in the novel symbolize?

8. What does Willem say in the opening scene when he is asked about his parents and why is it significant?

9. Discuss a time when Yanigihara uses a metaphor to represent some aspect of friendship.

10. Who is JB and how does he enter the story?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the motif of dreams appear within A Little Life and how does its treatment relate to the novel's depicted messages?

Essay Topic 2

How are the topics of romantic relationships, love, and sex treated within the novel A Little Life and how does their treatment relate to the novel's depicted messages?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze Yanagihara’s novel from an Existential perspective. What elements of life does it suggest hold the most meaning and why?

(see the answer keys)

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