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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. As mentioned in Letter #246, where is Frodo unable to give up the Ring?
(a) Fangorn Forest.
(b) Pelennor Fields.
(c) The Cracks of Doom.
(d) The Shire.

2. Based on Tolkien's letter to W.H. Auden, who is responsible for shaping an individual's behavior?
(a) Neither the individual nor people around them.
(b) The individual.
(c) People around the individual.
(d) The individual and people around them.

3. How long before Tolkien's death is the last letter of the book written?
(a) Four days.
(b) Ten days.
(c) Four weeks.
(d) Ten weeks.

4. What causes Frodo to have a breakdown in The Lord of the Rings?
(a) Pressure.
(b) Insecurity.
(c) Insanity.
(d) Evil influences.

5. How long is Tolkien's Letter #256 to Colin Bailey?
(a) Two paragraphs.
(b) One paragraph.
(c) One page.
(d) Two pages.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Tolkien expect the publisher to respond to his opinions of the cover designs?

2. How long does it take Tolkien to get his story about The Lord of the Rings published, according to Letter #159?

3. When is Letter #246, about Gandalf and the Ring, written?

4. Why does Tolkien think his new position at the university will be better received in Letter #182?

5. In Letter #227, how does Tolkien explain the name, Numenor?

Short Essay Questions

1. What previously unmentioned career achievement does Tolkien reveal to Christopher Bretherton in Letter #253?

2. What is the mystery of creative writing that Tolkien reveals in Letter #199 to Christopher?

3. What information does Tolkien provide in his remembrance of C.S. Lewis in Letters #257 and #261?

4. How does Tolkien disprove the misconception that his success was made overnight in Letter #159?

5. How did being a father help Tolkien in writing one of his most well known stories, The Hobbit?

6. In what way does Tolkien think that his story will help both existing parents and future parents?

7. What does Tolkien think about Frodo's breakdown at the Cracks of Doom being considered a moral failure?

8. Why, when, and how does Tolkien switch from writing with a pen and paper to using a typewriter?

9. As Tolkien explains in his letter to Unwin, why is the work of C.S. Lewis opposed by some?

10. What observation is made about Tolkien's work that prompts him to evaluate Frodo's heroic status?

(see the answer keys)

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