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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Funes, His Memory," what does the narrator lend Funes?
(a) A book believed to be written by John Milton.
(b) A magnifying glass.
(c) A book on ornithology.
(d) Some Latin books.

2. In "Ibn-Hakam-Al Bokhari, Murdered in his Labyrinth," Sa'id tells the preacher that he is afraid of what?
(a) Death at the hands of the ghost of Ibn-Hakam.
(b) Being burned to death.
(c) Losing his treasure through gambling.
(d) Being arrested.

3. In "The Improbable Impostor Tom Castro," how does Tom make a living after he gets out of jail?
(a) He gives speeches to audiences arguing either that he is innocent or guilty.
(b) He writes a bestselling book on how to impersonate.
(c) He sells rare coins.
(d) Having learned the law from his trial, he becomes a lawyer.

4. In "The Man on the Threshold," why is Judge Glencairn sent to the location where he disappears?
(a) He is going to a tryst.
(b) He is seeing a doctor.
(c) There are riots.
(d) He is going to review some legislation.

5. In "The Secret Miracle," how is Hladik eventually killed?
(a) He is given a pill.
(b) He is shot by a firing squad.
(c) He is hung.
(d) He is gassed.

6. In "Three Versions of Judas," who is Nils Runeberg?
(a) An amateur Bible enthusiast.
(b) A theologian.
(c) A rabbi.
(d) A detective, hired by the Vatican, who tracks heretics.

7. In "Funes, His Memory," the powers of Funes can best be described as which of the following?
(a) Inconsequential: Funes might remember everything, but goes about his usual daily life.
(b) Maddening: from the onset of his heightened memory, Funes is simply stark, raving mad.
(c) Extremely useful: Funes makes an excellent living using the powers of his mind.
(d) A mixed blessing--he can do things such as easily learn languages, but he is also trapped by this glut of information.

8. In "Hakim, the Masked Dyer of Merv," Hakim is revealed to have what disease?
(a) Tuberculosis.
(b) Skin cancer.
(c) Leprosy.
(d) He has no disease.

9. In "The Writing of God," how can Tzinacan escape?
(a) With a mysterious hacksaw he finds.
(b) By reading the fourteen words on the animal beside him.
(c) By reciting the Bible.
(d) By bribing one corrupt guard.

10. In "Story of the Two Dreamers," what does the man's dream tell him?
(a) He will make money in Persia.
(b) He will become a priest who doesn't believe in God.
(c) He will die in battle.
(d) He will marry a princess.

11. In "The Other Death," how does the author suggest that Damian could be both a hero and a coward?
(a) He doesn't; Damian is portrayed as strictly a hero.
(b) He conveys how Damian would run, then fight, run, then fight, continuously during the battle.
(c) Though he fled from the battlefield, 40 years later on his deathbed, Damian, through a miracle, wills himself to be a hero.
(d) He doesn't; Damian is portrayed as only a coward.

12. In "The Library of Babel," what would the librarian most like to find?
(a) His own autobiography, that he suspects he has written, though he can't remember.
(b) A book that summarizes all the other books.
(c) A mystical book said to explore God's reasoning for the destruction of the tower of Babel.
(d) A previously undiscovered version of "Macbeth."

13. In "Emma Zunz," where does Emma get a gun?
(a) It is hidden in the bathroom.
(b) She has it in her purse.
(c) A man on a street corner gives it to her.
(d) In Lowenthal's desk.

14. In "Averroes' Search," who is Averroes?
(a) An astrologer.
(b) A cartographer.
(c) A shaman.
(d) An Islamic philosopher.

15. In "The Theologians," what best describes Borges's characterization of theological disputes?
(a) They are clear-cut: there is a good side and a bad side.
(b) They are necessary and useful means of achieving immutable truth.
(c) They are absurd, contradictory, and essentially lead to madness.
(d) They are pleasant means of expressing one's ideas.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "The Widow Ching--Pirate," what does the second Imperial fleet do when they encounter Ching?

2. In "Three Versions of Judas," what is the third version of Judas?

3. In "Tlon, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius," what is Tlon?

4. In "The Cult of the Phoenix," what objects are involved in their rituals?

5. In "The House of Asterion," Asterion kills how many people?

(see the answer keys)

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