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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. What is a serious problem for the leaders of the White Army camp?

2. What does Lara blame for Pasha's abandonment of her?

3. Whom does Tonia tell Gordon and Dudorov is her step-father?

4. In Chapter 15, what does Lara help organize in Moscow?

5. When Yuri returns to Yuriatin, what does he discover in his room?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe how Yuri manages to escape from the Red Army camp.

2. Describe Yuri's relationship with Vasia.

3. Why does Yuri not accompany Lara to Vladivostok?

4. Describe what Yuri finds in Lara's house when he returns to Yuriatin.

5. How does Yuri react to Strelnikov's return?

6. In the Epilogue of Dr. Zhivago, Gordon and Dudorov discuss a woman named Christina. What has Christina done?

7. Why do Yuri's writings both inspire and threaten the characters in the book?

8. What could the rowan tree symbolize?

9. Why are Gordon and Dudorov interested in Yuri's book of poetry?

10. Pasternak ties the love story in Dr. Zhivago to a reference to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. How are the two romantic tragedies similar?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

After Lara leaves for Vladivostok, Yuri and Lara's husband, Strelnikov, meet in the house. Describe each man's reaction to the other man's presence. Discuss the irony of Lara's lover and husband both living in the same house. How did their conversation affect their actions?

Essay Topic 2

Throughout the book, Yuri is faced with many choices. Describe three major choices Yuri made and how they affected the outcome of the story. What events or characters motivated those choices? How might the story have been different had those choices not been made?

Essay Topic 3

Yuri Zhivago is a very sensitive man. Describe how Yuri expresses himself through poetry.

1) How does Yuri express his feeling of begin torn between two relationships? Cite a specific poem.

2) How does Yuri describe his confession of adultery? Cite a specific poem.

3) Describe one of Yuri's poems that reflect his love for Lara. How is this poem different than the first two examples?

(see the answer keys)

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