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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Book 3: "Arachne's Art," the author uses a simile in describing Emile. It is stated, "If the kitchen of the Boyarsky is an orchestra and Emile its conductor, then his chopping knife is" what?
(a) "The baton."
(b) "The woodwinds."
(c) "The tuba."
(d) "The strings."

2. By what affectionate name does the Count refer to the grand dining room off the lobby at the Hotel Metropole?
(a) The Shalyapin.
(b) The Idlehour.
(c) The Boyarsky.
(d) The Piazza.

3. Who is the author of the book of essays that the Count is reading in the beginning of Book 1: "An Appointment"?
(a) Montaigne.
(b) Chekhov.
(c) Federova.
(d) Breguet.

4. Who is said to be the current resident of room 317 at the Hotel Metropole in Book 1: "Archeologies"?
(a) Comrade Rostov.
(b) Comrade Leplevsky.
(c) Comrade Mindich.
(d) Comrade Tarakovsky.

5. On what date was Article 58 of the Criminal Code drafted, according to the narrator in Book 3: "Arachne's Art"?
(a) June 12, 1887.
(b) January 3, 1928.
(c) November 17, 1929.
(d) February 25, 1927.

6. What restaurant at the Hotel Metropole is described in Book 1: "An Acquaintanceship" as "that fabled retreat on the second floor"?
(a) The Idlehour.
(b) The Shalyapin.
(c) The Boyarsky.
(d) The Piazza.

7. By what name does the Count call the one-eyed cat at the Hotel Metropole?
(a) Fyodor.
(b) Pavel.
(c) Kutuzov.
(d) Stalin.

8. Who is holding their second meeting while the Count and Nina spy from the ballroom balcony in Book 1: "An Assembly"?
(a) The First Congress of the Moscow Branch of the All-Russian Union of Steelworkers.
(b) The First Congress of the Moscow Branch of the All-Russian Union of Taxi Drivers.
(c) The First Congress of the Moscow Branch of the All-Russian Union of Coal Miners.
(d) The First Congress of the Moscow Branch of the All-Russian Union of Railway Workers.

9. When did Serov paint the portrait of Helena, according to the narrator in Book 1: "1922: An Ambassador"?
(a) 1921.
(b) 1889.
(c) 1908.
(d) 1911.

10. Who is the boy that is with Nina in the ballroom when the Count enters in Book 2: "1926: Adieu"?
(a) Fyodor.
(b) Oleg.
(c) Boris.
(d) Pavel.

11. On what day of the week does the Count go for his weekly trim at the hotel barber?
(a) Tuesdays.
(b) Fridays.
(c) Mondays.
(d) Thursdays.

12. Of the ballroom, the narrator says in Book 1: "An Assembly," "Of course, there is now much more canvas than cashmere in the room, more gray than gold. But is the patch on the elbow really that much different from" what?
(a) "The suit and tie?"
(b) "The sceptor and the crown?"
(c) "The crown on the head?"
(d) "The epaulette on the shoulder?"

13. When the Count enters the ballroom in Book 2: "1926: Adieu," Nina explains that she and her friend are testing the "hypotheses of two renowned mathematicians in a single experiment." Who are the mathematicians being tested?
(a) Pythagoras and Einstein.
(b) Newton and Galileo.
(c) Aristotle and Plato.
(d) Einstein and Galileo.

14. In Book 3: "An Afternoon Assignation," the narrator states, "But art is the most unnatural minion of the state. Not only is it created by fanciful people who tire of repetition even more quickly than they tire of being told what to do, it is also vexingly" what?
(a) "Stringent."
(b) "Ambiguous."
(c) "Arbitrary."
(d) "Articulate."

15. What date is described in Book 3: "Arachne's Art" as "the launch of the First Five-Year Plan"?
(a) January 3, 1928.
(b) June 12, 1887.
(c) September, 20, 1885.
(d) March 12, 1902.

Short Answer Questions

1. What activity does the narrator describe the Count doing in detail in Book 3: "1930"?

2. What is Pavel's last name?

3. Why does the Count go to see Marina in Book 1: "An Assembly"?

4. Who brings in room service when the Count visits Anna in Book 2: "1923: An Actress, an Apparition, an Apiary"?

5. When did the Hotel Metropol first open its doors, according to the narrator in Book 1: "An Appointment"?

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