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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. Who is walking through the East Village and just happens to look up when a concrete clock falls right beside her?

2. Who forces the junkie to talk about the watch and the wedding ring?

3. At Siddon's crime scene, what part of her body is mutilated apart from her throat?

4. Who goes to Mallory's apartment to tell her that she is on compassionate leave?

5. Who is Butler's cleaning lady?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Mallory notice or fail to notice as she wanders through Manhattan on her way to meet Gaynor?

2. Why does the photographer think Siddon committed suicide?

3. When Margot cannot get into her apartment, how does she reveal her desperation in her subsequent acts?

4. Why does Mallory run out screaming from the seance?

5. How does Butler handle Mrs. Pickering request for help and her doubts about her mother's pet medium?

6. Why does a dog jump out the window in the prologue?

7. What does Edith reveal about showmanship and fraud?

8. Why is Mallory disconcerted when she meets Edith?

9. How do Kaplan and Mallory interact at the crime scene?

10. How is Mallory described in the book?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

O'Connell uses more than one iteration on the motif of life-death-life. Identify at least two motifs about life-death-life in the book. Then cite an example to support each answer.

Essay Topic 2

Who feels betrayed in Mallory's Oracle and in what ways? Who suffers as a result of this betrayal? What emotions are evoked by betrayal? Take a closer look at the different people involved and the roles they play.

Essay Topic 3

O'Connell uses more than one iteration on the theme of betrayal. Identify at least two themes about betrayal in the book. Then cite an example to support each theme you name.

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