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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. What title does the publisher give Joan's new book?

2. How does Joan feel when she can't find time to write?

3. Where does Joan visit her father?

4. How many pounds does Joan gain before her wedding?

5. What is the central health issue of Joan's childhood?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Joan try to stop the publication of Lady Oracle?

2. Why does Joan like to go to the movies with her Aunt Lou?

3. How does Joan use her personal fears and concerns within the plot of the novel she is writing?

4. How does Arthur make it easy for Joan to continue to lie to him?

5. How does Joan's mother try to control Joan's weight?

6. Explain why Joan does not tell her husband Arthur that she writes Costume Gothic novels.

7. What role does Marlene Pugh reappearance in Joan's life play?

8. Why is discovering that Paul writes romance novels valuable to Joan's life?

9. Describe Joan Foster's state of mind in Chapter 1.

10. Describe Joan's search for a fresh approach to her writing.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At the end of Lady Oracle, Joan says she will stop writing romance novels and instead write Science Fiction. Why do you think Joan wants to stop writing romances? Do you think writing romances contributes to Joan's dishonesty? Would she write a good Science Fiction tale? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

What kind of person is Aunt Lou? How does she act as a positive role model for Joan? Does Joan ever act in ways that remind you of Aunt Lou? Provide specific examples from the text to support your responses.

Essay Topic 3

Provide several examples of how humor is used in surprising ways to develop the plot of Lady Oracle. Is this an effective writing technique?

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