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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. Who does Mencken call the most romantic American author of the nineteenth century?
(a) Stephen Crane.
(b) William Dean Howells.
(c) Mark Twain.
(d) Henry James.

2. Who does Mencken call "the national ideal of a literary character"?
(a) Ring Lardner.
(b) William Dean Howells.
(c) Ambrose Bierce.
(d) Joseph Conrad.

3. Which is NOT one of the features of the typical school day, as envisioned by Mencken?
(a) Schoolboys deal with adults (teachers) they have great respect for.
(b) The school day is boring and sad.
(c) Learning is a largely automatic process.
(d) For stimulation, schoolboys try to talk to other schoolboys and only get punished for it.

4. Mencken reports on a boxing with which famed boxer?
(a) Gene Tunney.
(b) Fireman Jim Flynn.
(c) Gunboat Smith.
(d) Jack Dempsey.

5. What is "one of the most valuable human possessions" according to Mencken in Chapter 16?
(a) Dignity.
(b) The ability to do simple math.
(c) The reputation of being rich.
(d) Spatial awareness.

Short Answer Questions

1. What year did the New Deal programs begin?

2. Mencken begins Chapter 25 with a philosophical discussion of what phenomenon?

3. Who was the attorney on the side of the prosecution in the Scopes Monkey Trial?

4. What is the BEST term to use for Mencken's characterization of American millionaires?

5. Which president did Charles Joseph Bonaparte work for?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Mencken's own philosophy of psychology? What does he feel forms the basis of human psychology?

2. Summarize Mencken's account of the Scopes Monkey Trial and his impression of the town of Dayton, Tennessee.

3. Why does Mencken make mention of Sister Aimee? Who was Sister Aimee, and what was Mencken's opinion of her?

4. In Chapter 19, Mencken discusses science. Discuss his views of a) the scientific hypothesis, b) Charles Darwin, and c) Mr. Ayres' and his philosophy.

5. What opinion does Mencken render about a) Mary Baker G. Eddy and Christian Science, and b) the doctrine of theosophy?

6. In "Utopian Flights," how does Mencken suggest that legislators be chosen? What benefits would this method have, in his opinion?

7. What does Mencken feel is the contemporary state of psychology? How does he feel about Freudianism?

8. Why does Mencken criticize the American Medical Association? What is his opinion of doctors as a professional class?

9. What does Mencken believe about contemporary new inventions? Mention the telephone as well as the thermostat in your response.

10. What is Mencken's opinion of the music of Johann Strauss? Why wasn't Strauss' music more well-received in America?

(see the answer keys)

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