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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The Vonnegut family expects its family members to go out east to college. Where does the author's dad, Kurt Vonnegut Sr., go to college?
(a) UCLA.
(b) NYU.
(c) MIT.
(d) Harvard.

2. Why does the general at the ROTC inspection write down Vonnegut's name, which seems to lead to Vonnegut never rising above Private First Class?
(a) Vonnegut plays a practical joke.
(b) Vonnegut argues with the general.
(c) The general thinks Vonnegut is not a good soldier.
(d) Vonnegut arrives late to the inspection.

3. The Attorney General's Commission compares anything that sounds like the Sermon on the Mount to what?
(a) Communism.
(b) Marxism.
(c) Socialism.
(d) Capitalism.

4. What does Vonnegut's degree in anthropology teach him about villains?
(a) The "villains" are drugs, sex, and rock and roll.
(b) The "villains" are culture, society, and history, not drugs.
(c) The "villains" are art, music, and dance, not culture.
(d) The "villains" are drugs, theft, and rape, not society.

5. Who founds the Indianapolis chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous in 1955?
(a) Vonnegut's Uncle Alex.
(b) Vonnegut's sister.
(c) Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
(d) Vonnegut's mother.

6. Who is the Cody, Wyoming, artist who is America's foremost adventurer in the Abstract Expressionist movement?
(a) Jackson Pollock.
(b) George Segal.
(c) Keith Haring.
(d) Mary Cassatt.

7. For what does the traditional requiem ask?
(a) A heaven filled with angels playing harps.
(b) Entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven by Saint Peter.
(c) Eternal rest for the dead, where God's light perpetually shines on them.
(d) Sinners to be damned to Hell for all eternity.

8. How much does Vonnegut believe is enough to make a masterpiece? Beyond that, it is like empty talk at the end of a party.
(a) One-third.
(b) Three-fourths.
(c) One-half.
(d) Two-thirds.

9. To what author's work does Vonnegut compare the Bill of Rights' First Amendment?
(a) Dr. Seuss.
(b) J.K. Rowling.
(c) Michael Crichton.
(d) Dr. Dre.

10. The gestation period of 'possums is twelve days and Indian elephants twenty-two months. What does the author believe is the gestation period for American liberty?
(a) 20 years.
(b) 200 years.
(c) 100 years.
(d) 10 years.

11. Besides Indianapolis what other U.S. city is designed by the architect L'Enfant?
(a) Columbus, OH.
(b) Baltimore, MD.
(c) Seattle, Washington.
(d) Washington, D.C.

12. Vonnegut is enthusiastic about Pollock's work, but what does he feel is missing from Pollock's paintings?
(a) A horizon.
(b) Human figures.
(c) Color.
(d) Organization.

13. How does Vonnegut believe a writer's opinion about vocal third parties differs from that of a visual artist?
(a) They believe third parties are annoying.
(b) They dislike third parties as much as artists.
(c) They grow insecure when third parties give their opinions.
(d) Writing is tedious, so intruders, or third parties, are refreshing.

14. What does Vonnegut wish his father had insisted he study?
(a) Painting.
(b) Architecture.
(c) Law.
(d) Engineering.

15. In which art form does Father show promise before the Great Depression?
(a) Pottery.
(b) Sculpture.
(c) Printmaking.
(d) Painting.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why do psychiatrists believe Mark is a misdiagnosed depressive?

2. What ethnic groups does the Attorney General's Commission label as "terrorists" whenever possible?

3. Who enacts the Latin requiem text in 1570?

4. What choir performs Vonnegut's requiem?

5. Even after many years, what is imprinted in Vonnegut's mind?

(see the answer keys)

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