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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. 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) Sing a solo.
(d) Teach them a few words of Russian.

2. How late is Ivanovich running on the morning the tour leaves?
(a) 3 minutes.
(b) 12 minutes.
(c) 18 minutes.
(d) 1 minute.

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

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

5. From context, what is the likely meaning of the word "dactyl" in "On the other side...towered, arising from dactyl to dactyl, an ancient black castle" (14)?
(a) A tower in the shape of a digit, like a toe or finger.
(b) An architectural figure of a bird.
(c) A type of stone used in medieval constructions.
(d) An image found in a metrical foot of poetry.

6. Who is depicted "in a low-cut gown" on page 4?
(a) Justice.
(b) Fate.
(c) Temperance.
(d) Mercy.

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

8. What instrument does one of the men insist on teaching Ivanovich to play?
(a) Mandolin.
(b) Fiddle.
(c) Balalaika.
(d) Ukulele.

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

10. In the exclamation "How I hate you, our daily!" what technique is being used (13)?
(a) Synesthesia.
(b) Allusion.
(c) Amplification.
(d) Dialect.

11. What is discovered when the group members pool their food for dinner?
(a) Ivanovich is the only one who has brought something different.
(b) Some have brought very little food along.
(c) Most of the food has been spoiled by the long journey.
(d) The women are unwilling to prepare the food for the men.

12. What description does the narrator give of the train car on page 5?
(a) It "echoes like a tin box."
(b) It "reeks of holiday revelry."
(c) It is "unmistakably third-class."
(d) It is "cattle-car bare."

13. What is unusual about the four people who work together?
(a) All of them quit their jobs right before this trip.
(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) The men are married to the two women's sisters.

14. On page 19, to what does the narrator compare Ivanovich's return journey, away from the lake?
(a) A "hideous fairy tale."
(b) A "soul-shattering nightmare."
(c) A "sinister game."
(d) A "cruel, demeaning prank."

15. One woman is described as "burlesque" (6). From the context, which is most likely true?
(a) She works as an exotic dancer in Berlin.
(b) She seems like an exaggerated caricature.
(c) She is uncomfortably flirtatious.
(d) She spends most of the trip making jokes.

Short Answer Questions

1. What word does the narrator say describes the appearance of "all creatures still unknown to us" (4)?

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

3. Why does the group make Ivanovich eat a cigarette butt?

4. When Ivanovich falls asleep on the third day of the tour, how do the others wake him up?

5. What detail is the narrator uncertain if he is remembering correctly?

(see the answer keys)

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