woman in white essay questions

The Woman in White

74 pages • 2 hours read

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Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1, Section 1

Part 1, Sections 2-3

Part 2, Sections 1-2

Part 2, Sections 3-4

Part 3, Sections 1-5

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

In The Woman in White , Collins often creates characters that act as doubles . Choose one of the sets of doubles represented in The Woman in White and explore the role that doubles play in this novel. Discuss how and why Collins might have utilized this device to deepen thematic meaning.

Analyze the ways in which the supernatural interacts with the realistic elements of the plot of the novel. How does the use of the supernatural complicate the meaning of the novel? Use textual evidence to support your argument.

Discuss Collins’s exploration of justice and its limits in the novel. How does he illustrate and emphasize this theme?

In The Woman in White , Wilke Collins explores issues of virtue and morality. How do these issues manifest in the novel, and what role do they play?

Marriage, and the issues surrounding it in the Victorian era, is one of the main thematic concerns of the novel. What views does Collins present in the novel, and how does he address the value of marriage in Victorian society?

Choose three characters in the novel, and trace the ways in which marriage changes their lives. How does Wilke use these characters to illustrate the effect of marriage on people’s lives in the Victorian era?

Discuss Collins’s use of the environment to illustrate and underscore plot and character development. Offer specific examples from the text.

Analyze the ways in which Collins creates suspense in the novel. Use textual evidence to support your argument.

The Woman in White features the dreams of several characters. What role do dreams play in the novel, and what do the characters’ dreams reveal about themselves?

The gap between appearances and reality is often brought up during the course of the novel. Discuss the relationship between appearance and reality in the novel, and the way Collins’s discussion of this relationship deepens the thematic meaning of the novel.