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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 does Mr. Tulliver's accident cause Maggie to grow up?

2. Why does Mr. Tulliver advise Maggie and Tom not to become too close to Philip?

3. What do the Tullivers think of their daughter, Maggie?

4. How does Philip manage to get Tom excited about learning?

5. What words does the narrator use to describe what she calls "the mental condition of these emmet-like Dodsons and Tullivers"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do Mrs. Tulliver's sisters react to the actions of the Tulliver children?

2. Explain why Mrs. Glegg and Mr. Tulliver quarrel during the Dodson sisters' first visit to the Tullivers.

3. Why do you think that Philip Wakem is able to forgive Maggie for the boat trip so easily, while many of the townspeople cannot?

4. How does staying up late and talking to Lucy, during her first evening at Lucy's house, help Maggie to feel better?

5. Is Bob trying to court Maggie when he brings her the gift of books?

6. Why is Mr. Tulliver skeptical about Tom's plan to earn money by trading, in order to pay off the family debts?

7. Why do you think that George Eliot ends Book III with Mr. Tullivan's assertion in the Bible that he wishes Wakem evil?

8. Do you think that Tom has a fairly flexible, tolerant nature, or is he more stubborn and rigid? Explain your answer in terms of Tom's reaction to Lucy's attempts to peacemaker between him and Philip Wakem on Maggie's behalf.

9. How does Tom feel about the family's bankruptcy?

10. Why are the townspeople at St. Ogg's not surprised when the river starts to flood?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

George Eliot depicts Maggie as much more able, intellectually, than her brother Tom. Some critics read The Mill on the Floss as an early feminist novel, calling for the full education of women and for women's equality. Socially conservative critics, however, have a different perspective on the novel, and view it as making an argument for better educating women in order to make them more effective within the family. Choose a critical perspective that makes the most sense to you, based on your own background and beliefs. Use examples from The Mill on the Floss to make a feminist argument for the emancipation of women, or to make a socially conservative argument for full education of women on behalf of their role in the family.

Essay Topic 2

Research the legal issues that are raised during The Mill on the Floss. Then analyze Mr. Tulliver's legal problems. In your opinion, is Mr. Tulliver in the right? Why or why not? Use evidence from the book and from your own research to support your view.

Essay Topic 3

Why do you think that Maggie choses to marry neither Philip Wakem nor Stephen Guest? Explain what Maggie is thinking and why she wants to remain single. Use examples from The Mill on the Floss to support your point of view.

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This section contains 892 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample