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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What was the newspaper's popular column at the beginning of "How Proust Can Change Your Life ; Not a Novel"?
(a) A column that polled celebrities.
(b) A column for gardening.
(c) A column that interviewed politicians.
(d) A column for obituaries.

2. What does Proust find the newspaper reduces murders, tragedies, and the whole human experience to?
(a) Snippets of reality.
(b) "A morning treat".
(c) Snippets or fantasy.
(d) Bite size information.

3. What did Proust's grandfather do?
(a) Taught history.
(b) Practiced law.
(c) Practiced medicine.
(d) Manufactured wax candles.

4. What does De Botton suggest about human bodies?
(a) Humans become unhappy as our bodies go frail.
(b) They are insufficient.
(c) They are ugly.
(d) They lack security.

5. What was the name of the comedy troupe that aimed to find the most succinct summary of Proust's work?
(a) Montey P.
(b) Monty Python.
(c) Money Pyton.
(d) Ponty Mython.

6. How long is one sentence of Proust's in "In Search of Lost Time"?
(a) 4 meters.
(b) 5 meters.
(c) 4 and a half meters.
(d) 3 meters.

7. What year did Proust write his novel that gave him international acclaim?
(a) 1914.
(b) 1913.
(c) 1919.
(d) 1915.

8. What were Proust's main passions?
(a) Writing and reading.
(b) Literature and writing.
(c) Law and medicine.
(d) Reading and analyzing.

9. What was Proust's father's name?
(a) Dr. A. A. Proust.
(b) Dr. Adrien Proust.
(c) Mr. Adrien Proust.
(d) Dr. Adrian E. Prouste.

10. How did Proust feel in response to the article about the boy murdering his mother?
(a) Depressed.
(b) Unaffected.
(c) Disturbed.
(d) Sick.

11. When did Proust begin to work on his masterpiece?
(a) When his mom died.
(b) When his dad died.
(c) After both of his parents died.
(d) After he quit working at the library.

12. What was Proust rarely exposed to?
(a) People.
(b) Public places.
(c) Fresh air.
(d) Women.

13. What does Proust urge his readers to focus on?
(a) The past.
(b) The future.
(c) The present.
(d) History.

14. How would great stories of literature become boring?
(a) If they were reduced to one sentence sound bites.
(b) If they did not include violence.
(c) If they omitted details and left only facts.
(d) If they did not include romance.

15. What does De Botton suggest about human social life?
(a) It is necessary.
(b) It is insincere.
(c) It is unnecessary.
(d) It is sincere.

Short Answer Questions

1. What game did one person claim they would play in response to the newspaper's question?

2. What would Proust probe the train timetable for?

3. Who does De Botton wonder can be separated from his or her work in Chapter 4?

4. How many books did Proust's father publish?

5. What did Proust repress in his life?

(see the answer keys)

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