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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Pahom do when the court rules against him?
(a) He tries to appeal the case.
(b) He quits the commune in protest.
(c) He strips someone else's trees in revenge.
(d) He accuses the judges of taking bribes.

2. What does the expression "racked his brains" mean?
(a) Stared into space without thinking.
(b) Felt very sad.
(c) Searched hard for an answer.
(d) Organized his thoughts.

3. How far does Pahom walk in order to get to the new settlement?
(a) 30 miles.
(b) 130 miles.
(c) 3 miles.
(d) 300 miles.

4. How does Pahom's wife defend their life to her sister?
(a) She says that their life is steady and safe.
(b) She says that someday Pahom will make them rich.
(c) She says that their life is quiet and ordinary.
(d) She says that living in the countryside is more moral.

5. Whom does Pahom accuse of stripping his trees?
(a) The innkeeper.
(b) The head of the commune.
(c) Simon.
(d) His brother-in-law.

6. What is Pahom's reaction to the trouble with the steward?
(a) He insists that the family move to a new settlement.
(b) He takes his anger out on his family.
(c) He takes the steward to court.
(d) He refuses to have any more dealings with the man.

7. Who is the first person that the local landowner offers to sell her land to?
(a) Simon.
(b) The leader of the commune.
(c) The innkeeper.
(d) Pahom.

8. What does the stranger staying at Pahom's house overnight tell Pahom?
(a) Life in town is very risky.
(b) The Bashkir are selling land very cheaply.
(c) That people in the new settlement beyond the Volga are making good money.
(d) Life in the countryside is difficult but secure.

9. Where is Pahom when his wife and her sister are talking?
(a) Lying on the stove.
(b) Bringing in loads of wood.
(c) Working in the field.
(d) Resting in his cot.

10. When Pahom feels "aggrieved," what is he feeling?
(a) Sad for something he has lost.
(b) As if someone has harmed him.
(c) So angry he cannot think clearly.
(d) Greedy.

11. What agreement does Pahom come to with the landowner?
(a) He will pay less for the land because he can pay for it all in advance.
(b) He will work for her until the land is paid for.
(c) He will pay for the land over the next ten years, one-tenth at a time.
(d) He will pay for half of the land up front and half within two years.

12. What problem does the new steward create for the local peasants?
(a) He does not supervise his cattle properly.
(b) He fines them when their animals trespass on his employer's land.
(c) He demands payment of the peasants' outstanding loans.
(d) He refuses to sell seed to those who do not own their own land.

13. What reaction do the peasants have when they hear rumors about the sale of the land?
(a) They beg the woman not to sell her land.
(b) They go to court to try to add the land to the commune.
(c) They decide that they need to buy it themselves.
(d) They celebrate, because they do not like the landowner.

14. When the younger sister is "piqued," what is she feeling?
(a) Cautious.
(b) Curious.
(c) Angry.
(d) Tired.

15. In which situation might someone "grease your palm"?
(a) If you were asking to have them predict your future.
(b) If you were getting ready to do manual labor.
(c) If you were trying to do something you had never done before.
(d) If you were judging a contest they were in.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who calls Pahom's land a "narrow hole"?

2. How many acres does the local landowner have?

3. While the sisters talk, who is hiding behind the oven?

4. What does the older sister brag about?

5. What is Pahom's first reaction when he learns that people are moving to a new settlement?

(see the answer keys)

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