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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does Styron's body feel in the beginning of his depression?
(a) Numb, frail, disjointed, and clumsy.
(b) Heavy, lethargic, awkward, and bloated.
(c) Energetic, strong, capable, and lively.
(d) Manic, hyper, shaky, and strange.

2. What does the suicide of another of Styron's friends lead him to believe?
(a) That his friends must be weak.
(b) That life isn't worth living.
(c) That he would soon have to face the fact that his own suicide is his only way out.
(d) That he isn't a very good friend to others since he can't help them.

3. Who arranges a meeting between Albert Camus and Styron?
(a) Cino del Duco
(b) William Styron.
(c) Rose Styron.
(d) Romain Gary.

4. What do Styron's companions notice about him?
(a) He is very sleepy.
(b) He is angry at his friends.
(c) That he appears not to feel well.
(d) He is disoriented.

5. What puzzles Styron about Camus's book, "The Fall"?
(a) It was a good narrative of what a depressed person experiences.
(b) The title didn't fit the story.
(c) It was written so brilliantly though Camus was depressed.
(d) That the lawyer/narrator would want to kill himself.

6. What Camus novel has a profound impact on Styron?
(a) "The Stranger."
(b) "The Long Day."
(c) "Reflections of Life."
(d) "Paradise Lost."

7. According to Styron, why is the word depression so hard for people to accept?
(a) It has not been heard of before.
(b) It indicates a weak person.
(c) It is the word for a hole in the ground, which is very demeaning for a name of a major illness.
(d) People can't understand what it means.

8. Why is it hard for Styron to recognize depression in his friend, Gary?
(a) Because he rarely talked to Gary.
(b) Because Gary was so good at hiding his feelings.
(c) Because he didn't know what depression looked like.
(d) Because Gary always had a melancholy typical of Europeans.

9. What bothers Styron so much about not being able to meet Camus?
(a) It meant he had to go to his luncheon with Lady del Duco.
(b) Because it meant he barely missed getting to meet the man whose writing he so admired.
(c) It meant there was another suicide in his circle of friends.
(d) It meant Camus couldn't hear about winning the award.

10. Why would Jarrell's widow not want to admit he committed suicide?
(a) She didn't believe he committed suicide.
(b) Because of the stigma of suicide.
(c) Because she couldn't collect his life insurance.
(d) She was cheating on him.

11. When is depression at its worst?
(a) A blue state.
(b) Painful sorrow.
(c) Fake feelings of sadness.
(d) Madness.

12. What is Styron not able to recover?
(a) His family.
(b) His lucidity.
(c) His friendships.
(d) His fame.

13. Though Styron feels alone, who is always with him?
(a) His children.
(b) His psychiatrist.
(c) His friend, Gary.
(d) His wife, Rose.

14. Right before the onset of his depression, Styron begins to suffer from what?
(a) Lack of sexual interest.
(b) Excessive sleepiness.
(c) Extreme joy.
(d) Hypochondria.

15. What does Gary reveal to Styron about the effect the death of his ex-wife had on him?
(a) He was afraid he would be suspected in her death.
(b) He was afraid she had committed suicide.
(c) He finally felt free again.
(d) He began to suffer greatly from deep depression.

Short Answer Questions

1. What two substances contribute to Styron's depression?

2. What does Styron say would cause many depression-related suicides?

3. Which group of people have more incidence of depression than all others?

4. What is the award Styron receives?

5. What quote from Baudelaire does Styron use to explain his feelings?

(see the answer keys)

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