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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to the beginning of "How Proust Can Change Your Life ; Not a Novel" what did Proust hate?
(a) Museum crowds.
(b) People.
(c) Art.
(d) Writing.

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

3. How many years had it been since Proust visited the Louvre when he responded to the newspaper's poll?
(a) 10 years.
(b) 15 years.
(c) He had never been.
(d) 5 years.

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

5. What does Proust's description of the Duchesse de Guermantes reminds De Botton of?
(a) His step mother.
(b) The step mother of an ex girlfriend.
(c) His ex girlfriend.
(d) His sister.

Short Answer Questions

1. What did Proust do in response to the newspaper article about the young boy who murdered his mom?

2. What was the title of Proust's novel that gave him international acclaim?

3. What question does De Botton ask after he discusses Proust's father's work?

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

5. What did Proust have a fear of?

Short Essay Questions

1. Discuss the distinction between actual life and the "image" of life.

2. What was Proust's problem and difficulty with friendship?

3. Describe the young boy in the essay Proust wrote that was centered around a young boy's unhappiness.

4. What question is asked in Chapter 9?

5. Describe De Botton's MLP moment with Proust's character Albertine from "In Search of Lost Time".

6. What is Proust's overall point in his opinion on abbreviation?

7. Describe Proust's physical health.

8. Describe the subject of "How Proust Can Change Your Life ; Not a Novel"?

9. Discuss what question De Botton details that the L'Intransigeant asked in one of its polls?

10. What did Proust feel should be separated between a person and their friends?

(see the answer keys)

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