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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. Which detail most clearly supports the idea that the stoker is nervous about going to the office?

2. How does Karl feel when he realizes that the stoker could probably physically overpower everyone in the office?

3. Which is the most accurate description of the stoker's room?

4. How does Schubal say he found out that the stoker was in the office complaining about him?

5. Why are Karl and Jakob confused when Pollunder shows up to take Karl home with him?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the letter from Jakob to Karl say?

2. What mixed messages does Karl get from Jakob about the visit to Pollunder's country home?

3. What does Karl discover about Mak on his trip to the Pollunder home?

4. Why is Karl so exhausted when the story opens?

5. What details portray the women in the ship's kitchen as boldly flirtatious?

6. What does Karl imagine about his parents when he is in the office with the stoker?

7. What conclusions has Karl already come to about America when the second chapter opens, and why?

8. What is so fascinating to Karl about the desk in his room?

9. How does Karl spend his time during his first weeks in New York?

10. What bizarre interaction does Karl have with Klara after dinner?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze how Kafka's humor in Amerika reflects David Foster Wallace's commentary in "Laughing with Kafka." Establish the claims that Foster Wallace makes in his speech. Then, use quoted and paraphrased evidence from Kafka's text to support your analysis of the humor in Amerika and whether it does or does not support Foster Wallace's assertions. Cite evidence from both texts in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you take and defend a position about the symbolic value of the sword held by Lady Liberty in the opening paragraph of Amerika. As you formulate your idea about the sword's meaning, consider questions like the following: How does the symbol relate to Kafka's perceptions of America? What historical lens did Kafka view this country through? How does the symbol relate to a long tradition of European art? What impact would the sword have on a reader acquainted with this tradition? How does the idea of America itself contrast with old European traditions like this? Be sure to support your ideas with textual evidence from throughout the novel, and if you use outside sources, credit these in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Some critical approaches to Amerika consider Karl to be a kind of "genderless" character. Does your reading of the text support or challenge this interpretation? Write an essay that takes and defends a position about Karl's gender performance and its meaning. Support your assertions with evidence from the text.

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