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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. How does Merton describe his athletic endeavors?
(a) He brags about his abilities.
(b) He doesn't participate in sports.
(c) He says he lacks aptitude in sports.
(d) He believes he has natural talent.

2. What are the contents of the note Merton receives from his father?
(a) Instructions for caring for his brother.
(b) The address of his grandparents.
(c) A description of his father's travels to Africa.
(d) A goodbye from his mother.

3. Where did Merton's father receive medical treatment for his cancer?
(a) At Middlesex Hospital in London.
(b) At a hospital in Paris.
(c) At Durston Hospital in Scotland.
(d) At home with a personal physician.

4. Who came to visit Merton in 1930?
(a) Pop, Bonnemaman, and John Paul.
(b) Bonnemaman and Pop.
(c) Pop and Owen.
(d) Owen and John Paul.

5. How does Merton describe the boys at Ripley Court?
(a) They dislike sports.
(b) They are snobbish and unfriendly.
(c) They are cruel to him.
(d) They are pleasant and happy.

Short Answer Questions

1. What did Merton's parents do for a living?

2. What does Merton admire about Mark Van Doren?

3. Who put Merton on the academic path to Cambridge University?

4. What is the "sign of the Water Bearer"?

5. Who does Merton say gave him the only valuable religious and moral training he had received?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the significance of a book Merton purchased at Scribner's?

2. How does Merton describe his relationships with women in his book?

3. What significant event in Merton's monastic life forms part of the Epilogue?

4. What does Merton gain during his summer in Olean?

5. Why does Merton attend Zion Church?

6. Why does the Abbot accept Merton into Gethsemani?

7. How is it shown in Part 1, Chapter 3, that literature was important in Merton's life?

8. Why might Merton have been embarrassed by his grandfather's visit to France?

9. What important event takes place after Merton's acceptance into the monastery?

10. What is the purpose of the essay in the Epilogue?

(see the answer keys)

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