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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. How did French society view Laclos after the publication of _Les Liaisons Dangereuses_?
2. What does the author of the Editor's Preface claim he has done?
3. What has Merteuil tricked Cécile into doing?
4. What does Madame de Tourvel promise to Madame de Volanges in letter 11?
5. What occurs in the tale of seduction Valmont tells Merteuil in letter 79?
Short Essay Questions
1. How does Cécile describe Danceny to her friend Sophie?
2. What does the Editor state in the Editor's Preface?
3. How does the Publisher's Foreword introduce the novel?
4. What concession does Madame de Tourvel give Valmont, and what are the results?
5. What serious warning does Valmont give Merteuil?
6. What is the content of Danceny's letters to Cécile?
7. How does Valmont describe Madame de Tourvel?
8. How does Cécile feel about Danceny's first letter?
9. What action does Valmont take to make Madame de Tourvel love him, and what are the results?
10. What causes Cécile to become worried and sad about her upcoming marriage?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
What are Merteuil and Valmont's "ethics" of seduction? How do they plan their seductions? What motivates them to seduce and ruin others? What rules of letter writing, evidence gathering, and record-keeping do they have for themselves and for others? Do you see any ironic or hypocritical behavior in Valmont or Merteuil? Why do they constantly write to each other of their own plans, offer their criticisms or praises of each others plans, tell stories of seductions past, and warn each other of potential dangers?
Essay Topic 2
Analyze the changes in Cecile's character throughout the novel. What characteristics define her in the beginning, middle, and end of the story? Closely analyze Cécile's letters to Sophie, looking for language and phrasing which indicates how she feels about her relationships with others. This includes her thoughts on marriage, her relationship with her mother, her feelings for Danceny, and her friendship with Merteuil. How does her language and her style of writing help define Cécile's character? Why does she stop writing to Sophie? Why is Cécile's voice almost completely absent through the last portions of the novel? What does this conspicuous absence say about her identity, or lack thereof? What control, if any, does Cécile retain over her own life? How does she use this control, or how do others (specifically Valmont) control her?
Essay Topic 3
Examine the theme of male solidarity in the novel. Consider the following situations: the three men involved with Prévan's legendary seduction bond together to ruin all three women who are also Prévan's targets; Valmont convinces Madame de Tourvel's confessor, Father Anselme, to allow Valmont access to Madame de Tourvel; Valmont and Danceny, after dueling, bond together to ruin Merteuil. Are there similar instances of female solidarity in the novel? How does this influence your interpretation of gender roles in the novel? How are "communities," or even friendships, gendered in the text?
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This section contains 1,081 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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