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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 do Renee's clients have in common?
2. For how long has Renee worked in one place?
3. What is one way Renee plays to her clients' prejudice?
4. Why does Paloma begin to drink something different in the morning?
5. What does Paloma decide to do before she dies?
Short Essay Questions
1. Describe Renee Michel.
2. What does Paloma believe about life and why?
3. How does the young man who mentions Marx react to Renee's suggestion, and what is Renee's response?
4. What does Paloma decide to do after observing an interesting rugby player?
5. Who stops to ask Renee something when she and Manuela are talking and what is Renee's feelings about it?
6. What is one of Renee's favorite movie and why?
7. How does Madame de Broglie injure her ankle?
8. What does Paloma notice about one of the rugby players?
9. Who is Manuela and what does she want to do?
10. Describe Paloma.
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Often, authors will write about "what they know," and sometimes knowing a little about the author makes the books more interesting. Discuss the following:
1. Research and give a brief biographical sketch of Muriel Barbery.
2. What in Barbery's background may have helped her in writing "The Elegance of the Hedgehog"? What may have influenced the way she depicts various characters and scenes?
3. Do you think there is always some of the author's own life in his/her novels? Why or why not? Give examples.
Essay Topic 2
Renee Michel is a highly intelligent woman who has had the misfortune of being born poor. Renee has it in her mind that poor people are not supposed to be intelligent, therefore she hides her intelligence from the people around her, going to great lengths to create an appearance that shows lack of intelligence and imagination as well as a general disinterest in the world around her. To the contrary, Renee is quite intelligent, taking great joy from reading literature and philosophy, as well as watching artistic movies and studying great art. Renee is a complex person who hides her intelligence behind a mask to keep the world from intruding on her carefully created world.
1. Discuss, in depth, the reasons Renee might think being poor excludes intelligence. Use examples from the book and your own life to support your reasoning.
2. Pretending that Renee is your friend, write a letter to her explaining to her what you see are the problems with the way she hides herself. Use examples from the book and your own life to support your reasoning.
3. Discuss possible reasons that often poor people are seen as less intelligent than others. Include in your discussions factors such as low birth weight, poor diet, lack of access to quality education and social and environmental reasons. Use examples from the book and your own life to support your reasoning.
Essay Topic 3
Oftentimes, a book has more of a character-driven plot rather than action driven, and oftentimes the other way. Some books seem to balance the two. Discuss the following:
1. What do you think it means to say that a plot is character driven? Action driven?
2. How do you think a plot differs if it is character driven versus action driven?
3. Which type of plot do you find more interesting? Why?
4. Do you think it is possible to have a plot where action and character development share equal time? Why or why not.
5. What type of plot do you think "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" is? Explain your response.
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This section contains 1,157 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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