D.H. Lawrence

D.H. Lawrence Study questions

Facts about D.H. Lawrence

➾ A severe pneumonia attack at age 16 permanently damaged his health, forcing him to quit his first job as a clerk in a surgical appliance factory.

➾ He explored his mother’s “smothering love” for him, following his near-death from pneumonia, in his largely autobiographical novel Sons and Lovers.

➾ He once claimed his bond with his mother was “almost with a husband and wife love,” confessing that this intense closeness made him “abnormal”.

➾ His father was virtually illiterate and drank heavily, while his mother was an intellectually “superior” woman who spoke “King’s English”.

➾ He began an extramarital affair with Frieda von Richthofen Weekley, who was the wife of one of his former professors, soon after recovering from illness.

➾ He wrote his second novel, The Trespasser, based on an affair with Helen Corke, whose married lover had committed suicide in real life.

➾ Upon first meeting his future wife Frieda (a German baron’s daughter), they immediately discussed Oedipus, with “understanding leap[ing] through [their] words”.

➾ While traveling after eloping, he was arrested on suspicion of being a British spy, but was released through the influence of Frieda’s father.

➾ He was declared unfit for military service during World War I due to his weak chest, despite being called up multiple times for examination.

➾ His novel, The Rainbow (1915), was rapidly banned because its subject matter and language were considered too “explicitly sexual”.

➾ An exhibition of his own paintings, many of which were “ecstatic nudes,” was raided by the police for obscenity in London in 1929.

D.H. Lawrence MCQs

1. What are the years of D. H. Lawrence’s life (birth and death)?

A. 1870–1915
B. 1890–1935
C. 1880–1925
D. 1885–1930

D. 1885–1930

2. In which English village was David Herbert Lawrence born?

A. Croydon
B. Sheerness
C. Eastwood, Nottinghamshire
D. Vence

C. Eastwood, Nottinghamshire

3. What was the profession of Lawrence’s father, Arthur Lawrence?

A. School-teacher
B. Clerk in a factory
C. Preacher
D. Coal-miner

D. Coal-miner

4. What was the maiden name of Lawrence’s mother?

A. Weekley
B. Richtofen
C. Beardsall
D. Chambers

C. Beardsall

5. What did Lawrence’s mother, Lydia Beardsall, encourage her children to do?

A. Become coal-miners like their father
B. Remain in the mining community
C. Advance beyond their restrictive environment
D. Study psychoanalysis

C. Advance beyond their restrictive environment

6. Lawrence’s mother was described as belonging to which social group?

A. The mining community
B. The upper class
C. The lower bourgeoisie
D. The landed gentry

C. The lower bourgeoisie

7. What was Lawrence’s nickname as a child?

A. Dave
B. Arthur
C. Herbert
D. Bert

D. Bert

8. Lawrence won a scholarship to which school in 1898?

A. Davidson Road Boys’ School
B. Ilkeston Pupil-Teacher Centre
C. Nottingham University College
D. Nottingham High School

D. Nottingham High School

9. At age 16, Lawrence began working as a clerk in a factory manufacturing what?

A. Coal mining equipment
B. Books and stationary
C. Textiles
D. Surgical appliances/goods

D. Surgical appliances/goods

10. What disease caused the death of Lawrence’s older brother, Ernest?

A. Tuberculosis
B. Pneumonia
C. Cancer
D. Erysipelas (a skin disease)

D. Erysipelas (a skin disease)

11. What illness nearly killed Lawrence around the time his older brother died?

A. Tuberculosis
B. Erysipelas
C. Pneumonia
D. Influenza

C. Pneumonia

12. Which largely autobiographical novel examines Lawrence’s relationship with his mother?

A. The White Peacock
B. Women in Love
C. Lady Chatterley’s Lover
D. Sons and Lovers

D. Sons and Lovers

13. In what year did Lawrence attend Nottingham University College?

A. 1904
B. 1906
C. 1908
D. 1910

B. 1906

14. What subject did Lawrence spend time learning about while at Nottingham University College?

A. Greek literature
B. Modern languages
C. Psychology
D. Socialism

D. Socialism

15. After graduating in 1908, where did Lawrence get a job as a schoolmaster?

A. Eastwood, Nottinghamshire
B. Davidson Road Boys’ School near London (Croydon)
C. The Haggs
D. Ilkeston

B. Davidson Road Boys’ School near London (Croydon)

16. What was Lawrence’s first published novel?

A. Sons and Lovers
B. The Trespasser
C. The White Peacock
D. The Rainbow

C. The White Peacock

17. The Chambers family’s holding, ‘The Haggs,’ was the inspiration for which location in Sons and Lovers?

A. The pit face
B. Davidson Road
C. The Warren
D. Willey Farm

D. Willey Farm

18. Which daughter of the Chambers family is the fictional character ‘Miriam’?

A. Frieda
B. Louie
C. Helen
D. Jessie

D. Jessie

19. Jessie Chambers published her memoir about Lawrence under what initials?

A. ML
B. DH
C. ET
D. LB

C. ET

20. In what year did Jessie Chambers send Lawrence’s poems to The English Review?

A. 1907
B. 1909
C. 1911
D. 1913

B. 1909

21. Who was the editor of The English Review who first published Lawrence’s poems?

A. Ernest Weekley
B. Walter de la Mare
C. Ford Madox Ford
D. Edward Garnett

C. Ford Madox Ford

22. Lawrence’s early engagement was with which fellow student?

A. Jessie Chambers
B. Helen Corke
C. Louie Burrows
D. Rachel Annand Taylor

C. Louie Burrows

23. The material for Lawrence’s second novel, The Trespasser, came from his affair with whom?

A. Louie Burrows
B. Helen Corke
C. Jessie Chambers
D. Frieda Weekley

B. Helen Corke

24. When did Lawrence’s mother become ill with cancer?

A. November 1911
B. December 1910
C. August 1910
D. April 1912

C. August 1910

25. What was the original title of Sons and Lovers?

A. The Sisters
B. The White Peacock
C. Paul Morel
D. The Lost Girl

C. Paul Morel

26. Whose criticism prompted the third revision of Sons and Lovers?

A. Ford Madox Ford
B. Edward Garnett
C. David Chambers
D. Arthur Lawrence

B. Edward Garnett

27. Who was Frieda von Richtofen Weekley, whom Lawrence met in 1912?

A. An American poet
B. The daughter of a collier
C. The wife of a professor at Nottingham University College
D. A former schoolteacher

C. The wife of a professor at Nottingham University College

28. What detail about Frieda’s background suggested her unconventional nature?

A. She was American
B. Her father was a German baron
C. She had been a miner’s wife
D. She was a noted preacher

B. Her father was a German baron

29. How much older was Frieda’s husband, Ernest Weekley, than she was?

A. Five years
B. Ten years
C. Fifteen years
D. Twenty years

C. Fifteen years

30. In what year did Lawrence and Frieda elope?

A. 1911
B. 1912
C. 1913
D. 1914

B. 1912

31. What factor put stress on Lawrence and Frieda’s marriage during World War I?

A. Their financial straits
B. Lawrence’s military service
C. Their English-German marriage
D. The ongoing censorship of his novels

C. Their English-German marriage

32. What condition prevented Lawrence from being fit for military service?

A. His German wife’s nationality
B. His anti-war sentiments
C. His age
D. His weak chest/health issues

D. His weak chest/health issues

33. Which 1915 novel was met with harsh criticism and had its distribution severed?

A. Sons and Lovers
B. Women in Love
C. Lady Chatterley’s Lover
D. The Rainbow

D. The Rainbow

34. What was the original title of the manuscript split into The Rainbow and Women in Love?

A. Paul Morel
B. The Sisters
C. Twilight in Italy
D. The Lost Girl

B. The Sisters

35. When was Sons and Lovers finally published?

A. 1911
B. 1913
C. 1915
D. 1920

B. 1913

36. Besides novels, Lawrence was an accomplished writer in which genres?

A. Playwright, mathematician, and botanist
B. Poet, short story writer, essayist, critic, and travel writer
C. Historian, philosopher, and biographer
D. Journalist, playwright, and cartographer

B. Poet, short story writer, essayist, critic, and travel writer

37. What was the name of the planned new community Lawrence hoped to establish?

A. The Haggs
B. Eastwood
C. Rananim
D. The Villa Mirenda

C. Rananim

38. Lawrence and Frieda were accused of spying while living in which English region?

A. Nottinghamshire
B. Essex
C. Cornwall
D. London

C. Cornwall

39. What term did Lawrence use for his period of travel throughout the 1920s?

A. The great escape
B. Sávage pilgrimage
C. The life-force journey
D. The wanderlust period

B. Sávage pilgrimage

40. Which novel contains a fictional account of Lawrence’s military service examinations?

A. Women in Love
B. The Lost Girl
C. Kangaroo
D. Aaron’s Rod

C. Kangaroo

41. Which volume of poems contains pieces like ‘Snake’ and ‘Fish’?

A. Last Poems
B. Amores
C. Birds, Beasts and Flowers
D. Pansies

C. Birds, Beasts and Flowers

42. Which novel, set in Australia, was written after Lawrence traveled there?

A. The Lost Girl
B. The Plumed Serpent
C. Kangaroo
D. Aaron’s Rod

C. Kangaroo

43. Which long short-story evokes the area of Lawrence’s ranch in New Mexico?

A. The Lost Girl
B. England, My England
C. St. Mawr
D. The Ship of Death

C. St. Mawr

44. Which novel is set in Mexico and deals with the revival of ancient Aztec gods?

A. Kangaroo
B. Lady Chatterley’s Lover
C. The Plumed Serpent
D. The Trespasser

C. The Plumed Serpent

45. Which of Lawrence’s later works saw his imagination turn back to his native Nottinghamshire?

A. The Rainbow
B. The Plumed Serpent
C. Lady Chatterley’s Lover
D. Women in Love

C. Lady Chatterley’s Lover

46. In which country did Lawrence work on Lady Chatterley’s Lover?

A. France
B. Mexico
C. Italy (near Florence)
D. Australia

C. Italy (near Florence)

47. What event occurred in July 1929 at the Warren Gallery in London?

A. The publication of Last Poems
B. An exhibition of his paintings was raided by the police
C. He received an award for his essay writing
D. He was arrested on suspicion of spying

B. An exhibition of his paintings was raided by the police

48. Which poems’ manuscript was seized by British authorities in the last year of his life?

A. Amores
B. Look! We Have Come Through
C. Pansies
D. Last Poems

C. Pansies

49. What was the cause of D. H. Lawrence’s death in 1930?

A. Erysipelas
B. Influenza
C. Cancer
D. Tuberculosis

D. Tuberculosis

50. In which country did Lawrence die on March 2, 1930?

A. England
B. Italy
C. France (Vence)
D. New Mexico

C. France (Vence)

The Virgin and the Gipsy MCQs

The Virgin and the Gípsy MCQs

1. What caused the initial scandal involving the vicar’s family?

A. The vicar lost his faith
B. The vicar’s wife ran off with a young and penniless man
C. The vicar was accused of essay writing
D. The vicar’s house burned down

B. The vicar’s wife ran off with a young and penniless man.
The mother’s choice to follow her passion creates a deep fear of sexuality and scandal in the family home.

2. The Papplewick rectory was described as a rather ugly stone house located near what body of water?

A. The Papple river
B. The North Sea
C. A stagnant pond
D. The industrial canal

A. The Papple river.
The house and its location next to the river symbolize the cold, damp, and emotionally stagnant life of the family.

3. Who became the central figure in the rectory household?

A. Aunt Cissie
B. Uncle Fred
C. Granny (The Mater)
D. Lucille

C. Granny (The Mater).
Granny’s powerful and life-denying will dominates the entire family and household.

4. Aunt Cissie was over forty, pale, pious, and gnawed by what internal issue?

A. Guilt
B. Financial worry
C. An inward worm
D. Hunger

C. An inward worm.
This metaphor describes Aunt Cissie’s repressed desires and bitterness, which eat away at her from the inside.

5. What symbolic image did The Mater establish for the rector’s deceased/delinquent wife?

A. A pure white snowflower
B. A poisonous berry
C. A withered oak leaf
D. A bright sun

A. A pure white snowflower.
Granny creates a false, pure image of the runaway wife to hide the messy reality of sex and passion.

6. What name did the family sometimes use for the actual woman who had left?

A. The Bad Nettle
B. She-who-was-Cynthia
C. Arthur’s Mistake
D. The Widow

B. She-who-was-Cynthia.
This cold name shows how the family has tried to erase the mother’s real identity and the scandal she caused.

7. What “rank, evil smell” sometimes came from the squalid world to the children?

A. The smell of tobacco
B. The smell of selfishness and degraded lust
C. The smell of wet wool
D. The smell of old food

B. The smell of selfishness and degraded lust.
The children can sense the ugly, hidden emotions of the adults, which feels like a bad smell in the house.

8. Who was Granny’s great rival among the younger generation?

A. Lucille
B. Aunt Cissie
C. Yvette
D. Uncle Fred

C. Yvette.
Granny sees Yvette’s youthful vitality and connection to her mother’s spirit as a threat to her own power.

9. What were the approximate ages of Lucille and Yvette when they finally came home from school?

A. 23 and 21
B. Nearly twenty-one and nineteen
C. 18 and 16
D. 25 and 23

B. Nearly twenty-one and nineteen.
The girls return as young women, ready for life and love, but find their home to be a prison.

10. What did Yvette hope would happen to her romantically?

A. To fall violently in love
B. To marry a rich man
C. To settle down quickly
D. To avoid men altogether

A. To fall violently in love.
Yvette is bored with proper society boys and longs for a powerful, overwhelming passion.

11. What impression did the rectory strike the girls with upon their return?

A. Elegant and modern
B. Ugly, almost sordid, with a dank, unclean air
C. Warm and welcoming
D. Vast and intimidating

B. Ugly, almost sordid, with a dank, unclean air.
After being away, the girls see their home clearly for the first time as an emotionally dirty and stifling place.

12. How was the life in the village of Papplewick characterized?

A. Glamorous and fast-paced
B. Stony and dour
C. Transient and forgiving
D. Highly cultured

B. Stony and dour.
The industrial village is as cold and lifeless as the rectory, offering no escape for Yvette.

13. When Yvette opened the window for fresh air, who immediately closed it, without looking at his daughter?

A. Uncle Fred
B. The Rector
C. Granny
D. Aunt Cissie

B. The Rector.
This simple action shows the rector’s fear of the outside world and his refusal to acknowledge his daughter’s desires.

14. How did Granny physically express her “gross physical complacency” after meals?

A. She coughed loudly
B. She “rifted” (belched)
C. She snored
D. She exercised

B. She “rifted” (belched).
Granny’s vulgar physical habits disgust Yvette, representing the ugly, animalistic nature hidden beneath the family’s respectability.

15. What action by Yvette during tea caused Aunt Cissie’s “green rage” to fuse in her heart?

A. She insulted Granny
B. She accidentally knocked over a cup
C. She helped herself to Aunt Cissie’s cake
D. She mocked Leo Wetherell

C. She helped herself to Aunt Cissie’s cake.
This small act of defiance over a piece of cake triggers the repressed fury of the household.

16. Yvette suddenly saw Granny’s “stony, implacable will-to-power” and compared her to what creature hunting bees?

A. An old crocodile
B. An aged, bulging toad
C. A large wolf
D. A sleepy cat

B. An aged, bulging toad.
This powerful image shows Yvette’s realization that her grandmother is a cold, predatory creature who consumes the life of others.

17. What happened to the toad that Yvette watched swallowing bees?

A. It was relocated
B. It was killed by the gardener with a stone
C. It died of old age
D. It was caught by Uncle Fred

B. It was killed by the gardener with a stone.
The violent death of the toad foreshadows Granny’s own death by a powerful, natural force.

18. Who did the young people encounter on the upland lane, driving a light cart?

A. Uncle Fred
B. A gípsy man
C. The Duke
D. Lady Louth’s chauffeur

B. A gípsy man.
This is the first appearance of the gípsy, who represents a world of freedom, instinct, and otherness.

19. What word described the gípsy man’s gaze towards the occupants of the car?

A. Terrified
B. Insolent in its indifference
C. Desperate
D. Questioning

B. Insolent in its indifference.
The gípsy does not care about their social class or opinions. His indifference challenges Yvette’s sense of self.

20. What feeling took fire in Yvette’s breast when she met the gípsy’s eyes?

A. Hatred
B. She realized he was stronger than she was, and didn’t care
C. Amusement
D. Maternal instinct

B. She realized he was stronger than she was, and didn’t care.
His powerful, indifferent gaze awakens a new awareness in Yvette, making her feel powerless for the first time.

21. What kind of pride was evident in the male gípsy’s eyes while he watched the group?

A. The pride of the wealthy
B. The pride of the pariah
C. The pride of a loyal husband
D. The pride of a good craftsman

B. The pride of the pariah.
As an outcast (a pariah), the gípsy has a defiant pride that comes from being completely outside of society.

22. When Yvette emerged from the caravan, how was her appearance described?

A. Triumphant and joyous
B. Like a witch, silent and stooping
C. Distressed and weeping
D. Suddenly practical

B. Like a witch, silent and stooping.
Having her fortune told is a disturbing and transformative experience that leaves her looking dazed and strange.

23. What was the total amount that Yvette admitted to borrowing from the proceeds of Mary in the Mirror?

A. Fifteen shillings
B. Three pounds thirteen
C. Seven pounds
D. Her entire allowance

B. Three pounds thirteen.
This small debt creates a huge scandal in the family, showing their obsession with money and appearances.

24. The rector feared Yvette was developing the tainted qualities of whom?

A. Uncle Fred
B. Granny
C. She-who-was-Cynthia
D. Aunt Cissie

C. She-who-was-Cynthia.
The rector is terrified that Yvette will repeat her mother’s scandalous behavior and run away.

25. What negative description did the rector apply to his own feelings/heart?

A. A silver shield
B. A kind core
C. A fat, awful worm
D. A noble sacrifice

C. A fat, awful worm.
This image reveals the rector’s hidden self-loathing and the corrupt, worm-like selfishness at the heart of his piety.

26. Why did Yvette’s whole flesh shrink after the incident?

A. She was cold
B. She felt physical contagion from the “leprous money”
C. She was injured by Aunt Cissie
D. She was extremely tired

B. She felt physical contagion from the “leprous money”.
Yvette feels that the family’s obsession with money is a disease that has physically tainted her.

27. What did Yvette think the Saywells always wanted to defile?

A. The rectory reputation
B. Her sensitive, clean flesh and blood
C. The family honor
D. The church funds

B. Her sensitive, clean flesh and blood.
She feels her family’s ugly emotions are an attack on her own vibrant, physical being.

28. After the confrontation with Aunt Cissie, Yvette wished she lived where?

A. In the city
B. In a camp, in a caravan, like a gípsy
C. Back in Lausanne
D. With the Framleys

B. In a camp, in a caravan, like a gípsy.
After the ugly family fight, Yvette longs for the free and unconventional life of the gípsies.

29. What quality of the gípsy woman did Yvette admire?

A. Her wealth
B. Her covert, unyielding sex and defiant pride
C. Her piety
D. Her elegant manners

B. Her covert, unyielding sex and defiant pride.
Yvette is drawn to the gípsy woman’s powerful, defiant sexuality, which is the opposite of the rectory’s repression.

30. How did the gípsy man’s “naked insinuation of desire” affect Yvette?

A. It made her furious
B. It made her life prone and powerless
C. It made her embarrassed
D. It made her laugh

B. It made her life prone and powerless.
His raw, animal-like desire awakens a powerful and frightening response in her that she cannot control.

31. What comment by Granny triggered Lucille’s furious outburst?

A. That Yvette should apologize
B. About them coming of “half-depraved stock”
C. That they were too selfish
D. That they should take Vibrofat

B. About them coming of “half-depraved stock”.
This insult against their runaway mother finally makes the usually calm Lucille snap and defend her.

32. After the gípsy left, what did Yvette say to herself, disappointed she could not shake off the dream-like encounter?

A. He has too much power over me
B. No, he hasn’t any power over me!
C. I must forget him
D. I must pray for him

B. No, he hasn’t any power over me!.
Yvette tries to deny the powerful effect the gípsy has on her, but she is unable to forget him.

33. Yvette was dressing up to counteract the gípsy, seeing what hidden quality in her?

A. Her vanity
B. The dark, tremulous, potent secret of her virginity
C. Her family history
D. Her bad temper

B. The dark, tremulous, potent secret of her virginity.
She feels the gípsy could see her deepest, most vulnerable self, and she tries to hide it with fancy clothes.

34. On Friday, Yvette felt her intrinsic body was where?

A. At home sewing
B. Away, at the quarry, among the caravans
C. In the church choir
D. Touring the city

B. Away, at the quarry, among the caravans.
Her mind is at home, but she feels her true, essential self is with the gípsies.

35. What was the gípsy’s wife and cart doing on the Friday Yvette visited alone?

A. At the rectory
B. Gone out with the basket, selling things
C. Hiding from the police
D. Visiting family

B. Gone out with the basket, selling things.
This detail leaves Yvette and the gípsy man alone together, creating a moment of tension and possibility.

36. What was the intruding sound that stopped Yvette from entering the gípsy’s caravan?

A. A church bell
B. A motor-car rushing near
C. A falling rock
D. A police siren

B. A motor-car rushing near.
The sound of the modern world (a car) interrupts the timeless, prímitive moment between Yvette and the gípsy.

37. How did the little Jewess describe her current relationship status?

A. Recently married
B. On her honeymoon before the divorce was final
C. A pious spinster
D. Engaged to the gípsy

B. On her honeymoon before the divorce was final.
The arrival of this unconventional couple provides Yvette with a real-life example of people living outside of normal rules.

38. What shared history did Major Eastwood and the gípsy man discover they had?

A. They were neighbors
B. The gípsy had served with the artillery teams in the Major’s regiment
C. They were related
D. They were both essayists

B. The gípsy had served with the artillery teams in the Major’s regiment.
This shared military past suddenly places the gípsy within a social system, making him seem less mysterious to Yvette.

39. What terrible outcome did the rector threaten Yvette with if she did not curb her tendencies?

A. Financial hardship
B. Criminal-lunacy asylum
C. Banishment to London
D. Forced marriage

B. Criminal-lunacy asylum.
The rector uses the threat of madness to try and control his daughter’s unconventional behavior.

40. What action did the rector vow he would take before allowing Yvette to follow her mother’s path?

A. He would kill her
B. He would disown her
C. He would seek help
D. He would pray continuously

A. He would kill her.
This violent threat shows the depth of the rector’s fear of scandal and his desire to control his daughter.

41. Whom did Yvette come to detest with a “pure, sheer hatred which is almost a joy”?

A. The Eastwoods
B. Granny
C. Lucille
D. Aunt Cissie

B. Granny.
After the family fights, Yvette’s dislike of her grandmother transforms into a pure, liberating hatred.

42. Yvette felt that if she belonged to any side or clan, it was to that of whom?

A. Her mother, Cynthia
B. The gípsy
C. The Framleys
D. The rector

B. The gípsy.
Yvette rejects her own family and society, and chooses to align herself with the outsider, the gípsy.

43. What was the first part of the message the old gípsy dreamed for Yvette?

A. Trust no one
B. Be braver in your body, or your luck will leave you
C. Leave Papplewick now
D. Find happiness in marriage

B. Be braver in your body, or your luck will leave you.
The gípsy’s prophetic message is a direct instruction for Yvette to trust her physical instincts over her fearful mind.

44. What was the second instruction in the gípsy’s prophetic message?

A. Listen for the sound of bells
B. Listen for the voice of water
C. Climb the highest hill
D. Wait for the dark man

B. Listen for the voice of water.
This part of the prophecy foreshadows the climactic flood that will destroy the rectory.

45. Yvette had a curious reluctance towards what, preventing her from revisiting the gípsies?

A. Speaking to her father
B. Taking action, or making any real move of her own
C. Cycling in the mud
D. Eating the camp food

B. Taking action, or making any real move of her own.
Even though she desires freedom, Yvette is paralyzed by her conventional upbringing and finds it hard to act decisively.

46. What sight did Yvette witness approaching around the bend of the river?

A. A flock of birds
B. A shaggy, tawny wavefront of water advancing like a wall of lions
C. A fisherman’s boat
D. Her father returning

B. A shaggy, tawny wavefront of water advancing like a wall of lions.
The flood arrives as a powerful, animal-like force of nature, ready to destroy the stagnant world of the rectory.

47. When swept away by the water, the gípsy maintained a fearful grip on Yvette’s what?

A. Hair
B. Wrist
C. Neck
D. Coat

B. Wrist.
The gípsy appears just in time to save Yvette, pulling her into the rectory as the flood hits.

48. Granny emerged into the hall from the dining-room door and was seen clawing with her hands as the first water swirled around what part of her body?

A. Her stomach
B. Her legs
C. Her head
D. Her arms

B. Her legs.
Granny, the symbol of the rectory’s corrupt power, is trapped downstairs and is the first to be hit by the flood.

49. What visible sign of Granny was briefly seen clinging to a banister rail before she disappeared into the upheaval of water?

A. Her silver hair
B. The glint of a wedding ring
C. Her cap
D. Her cane

B. The glint of a wedding ring.
The last image of Granny is her wedding ring, a symbol of the conventional life and power that is being washed away.

50. What caused the catastrophic flood?

A. A terrible storm
B. The bursting of the great reservoir up in Papple Highdale
C. The river overflowing naturally
D. An intentional sabotage

B. The bursting of the great reservoir up in Papple Highdale.
The flood is caused by a failure of a mán-made structure, symbolizing the collapse of the industrial world.

Brief Overview

The Virgin and the Gípsy follows a young woman named Yvette. She returns from finishing school to live in a lifeless country rectory with her cold-hearted family.

Her father, the Rector, is emotionally controlling, and her grandmother is a selfish old woman who dominates the house. Yvette feels suffocated by the lack of passion and the judgmental atmosphere.

She feels a strong pull toward a different way of life. One day, she and her sister meet a group of gípsies who are camped nearby. Yvette is especially fascinated by one of the men, a “gípsy” who is proud, quiet, and seems to understand her unhappiness. He represents a natural, instinctive freedom that her family fears and despises.

The gípsy awakens a deep longing in Yvette, and she has a few brief, tense meetings with him. Her family is scandalized by her interest in him. The story’s climax is not an affair, but a sudden, violent flood that bursts a dam and destroys the rectory, trapping the family.

As the cold, deadly water rises, the gípsy breaks in to save Yvette. He holds her and keeps her warm, saving her from the flood and the “coldness” that defines her family life. After the rescue, he disappears, but the experience has permanently changed Yvette, freeing her from her family’s control.