View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the job of the older man who talks to Ivanovich about Russia?
(a) Produce distributor.
(b) Post-office clerk.
(c) Paper manufacturer.
(d) Accountant.

2. What word does the narrator say describes the appearance of "all creatures still unknown to us" (4)?
(a) "Innocent."
(b) "Cryptic."
(c) "Formidable."
(d) "Drowsy."

3. What does the Bureau's song equate with solitude?
(a) Independence.
(b) Intellect.
(c) Depression.
(d) Criminality.

4. What is the "unusual expression" of the lake's water (14)?
(a) An oddly red color.
(b) A cloud reflected in its center.
(c) Waves moving away from the shore instead of towards it.
(d) Ripples that seem to follow Ivanovich along the shore.

5. After dinner, what do the other tour members insist that Ivanovich do?
(a) Prove that he knows where they are going.
(b) Practice speaking German more clearly.
(c) Teach them a few words of Russian.
(d) Sing a solo.

6. How does Ivanovich get to the train on the morning of his departure?
(a) He takes a streetcar.
(b) The narrator drives him.
(c) He walks.
(d) He takes a taxi.

7. Including Ivanovich and the Bureau employees, how many people are in the tour group?
(a) 12.
(b) 8.
(c) 10.
(d) 14.

8. At the inn near the lake, what nationality does Ivanovich believe the innkeeper to be?
(a) German.
(b) Russian.
(c) Italian.
(d) Austrian.

9. What does Ivanovich do to distract himself from "the absurdity and horror of the situation" (6)?
(a) Tries to fall asleep.
(b) Plays solitaire.
(c) Reads his book.
(d) Looks out the window at the scenery.

10. At what time of the morning is Ivanovich supposed to report for the tour?
(a) 7 a.m.
(b) 9 a.m.
(c) 11 a.m.
(d) 5 a.m.

11. Who greets Ivanovich at the inn near the lake?
(a) The innkeeper.
(b) A goose.
(c) A puppy.
(d) A pretty girl.

12. What is unusual about the four people who work together?
(a) The men are married to the two women's sisters.
(b) They work for the same employer but have never met until this trip.
(c) Two have the same last name and two have the same first name.
(d) All of them quit their jobs right before this trip.

13. Which character is said to have "lustreless eyes and a vague velvety vileness" (6)?
(a) Schramm.
(b) Greta.
(c) The widow.
(d) Schultz.

14. What does Ivanovich enjoy reading?
(a) English metaphysical poetry.
(b) Russian lyrical poetry.
(c) German Classical poetry.
(d) French Baroque poetry.

15. How does the text's language change when the group gets off the train at the last stop on the first day?
(a) The language becomes more lyrical.
(b) The language becomes more circuitous.
(c) The language becomes more conversational.
(d) The language becomes more grandiloquent.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the narrator say is "dangerous for the soul" (7)?

2. What does Ivanovich think "must be oriented toward something or someone" (4)?

3. What is discovered when the group members pool their food for dinner?

4. What does Ivanovich associate with happiness?

5. Which of the following best characterizes the narrator's attitude toward the absurd process that Ivanovich is told he must follow to sell back the tickets?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 558 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample