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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. Mademoiselle threatens several times to leave. Why does she end up staying?

2. What does the rain cause to grow on the estate?

3. How many years does Mademoiselle spend with the family?

4. Why does Young Vladimir favor the new methods of studying butterflies?

5. What does Nabokov learn to read and write before Russian or French?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is known about the chapters prior to the writing of this book?

2. What is a difficulty that Russian writers endure?

3. How is Nabokov's experience at Cambridge?

4. How do the Nabokovs travel from St. Petersburg to Paris?

5. What does young Vladimir think about when he wakes in the morning?

6. Why does Nabokov have trouble sleeping?

7. In 1910, the Nabokov brothers acquire teeth braces. How does their father reward them for dealing with the dental sessions?

8. What is cause is Vladimir's passion?

9. Who is Mademoiselle?

10. How does Nabokov's autobiography begin?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What surprises Nabokov when he encounters his former nanny, "Mademoiselle," years later? What are two possible reasons for his confusion?

Essay Topic 2

What is significant about Nabokov's time spent in Biarritz? What does one learn about his character and view of women?

Essay Topic 3

However, even though Nabokov despises the Bolsheviks, he is determined to retain his Russian identity and to become proficient as a Russian author.

Part 1) Why is this important to him?

Part 2) How is becoming a Russian novelist a struggle at Cambridge?

Part 3) Predict where his works will be more popular, in Russia or Western Europe and the United States? Why?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 978 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample