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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 is Ben Davenport ill with in Chapter 6?

2. Who is Sally Leadbitter?

3. What affliction does Margaret tell Mary she suffers from?

4. Which important people hold a meeting in Chapter 16?

5. Who does Alice offend with her toast?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does John Barton help the Davenport family?

2. How does Mary react to Jem Wilson's marriage proposal?

3. Recount the confrontation between Jem and Harry Carson in the street.

4. Why is John Barton upset upon his return from London?

5. What job does Mary find and how is she compensated for her work?

6. What happens when John Barton runs into his sister-in-law Esther in the street?

7. What happens when Mrs. Barton goes into labor in Chapter 3?

8. Why is Mrs. Barton upset in the first two chapters of the novel?

9. What advice does Margaret offer Mary about her feelings for Jem?

10. Why does John Barton go to London in Chapter 8?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

A number of the working class characters of the novel "Mary Barton" strive to raise their social status. Discuss who does this and how they go about doing so.

Essay Topic 2

Gaskell uses language to make the characters more vivid and realistic. Discuss how Gaskell uses dialect and regional works to bring the Lancashire world to life.

Essay Topic 3

Forgiveness is a recurring motif in the novel. What examples of forgiveness can be found, and what compels the characters to forgive others?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 620 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample