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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. Where is Ben Lama’s retreat assistant from, according to the narrator in Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 4?
(a) Dublin, Ireland.
(b) Warsaw, Poland.
(c) Paris, France.
(d) Berlin, Germany.

2. The traveler is said to have once been a resident of what location in the U.S. in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 1?
(a) New Brunswick, New Jersey.
(b) Little Rock, Arkansas.
(c) Queens, New York.
(d) Los Angeles, California.

3. What month is it that the traveler arrives in Poland in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 1?
(a) September.
(b) August.
(c) December.
(d) February.

4. What word from Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3 refers to the condition in which sexual gratification depends on causing pain or degradation to others?
(a) Pedantic.
(b) Fatigue.
(c) Dread.
(d) Sadism.

5. The narrator describes Dr. Stern in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3 as “one of those perverse intellectuals who enjoy the role of” what?
(a) “The professor.”
(b) “The priest.”
(c) “The student.”
(d) “The buffoon.”

Short Answer Questions

1. The traveler describes Cecilia Gallerani as whose adolescent mistress in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 1?

2. What object does Dr. Olin recall “collapsing upon itself in an October field in the New England dusk” “as the loneliest thing he’d ever seen,” according to the narrator in Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 4?

3. Where does the narrator say Dr. Olin attended university in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3?

4. Inside the concentration camp, the narrator describes Block 10 as the location where “the assorted sadisms” of what were administered, in Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 4?

5. Where was chemist and writer Primo Levi born?

Short Essay Questions

1. How would you describe the symbolic significance of the character of G. Earwig in the novel?

2. What does Olin consider about his behavior after the departure of Wanda and Mirek in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 2?

3. What setting at the concentration camp is described in the opening of Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 5?

4. What favor does the young couple offer to the traveler in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 1? Why?

5. What are Dr. Olin’s personal reasons for attending the retreat, according to the narrator in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3?

6. What is on the agenda for the first morning of the retreat in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3?

7. When did Olin’s grandparents and father leave Europe, according to the narrator in Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 5?

8. How does the narrator describe Dr. Olin’s professional objectives at the retreat in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3?

9. What is taking place when Mr. Earwig initiates a conflict in Part II: “In the Ogre’s Cave,” Chapter 4?

10. How does Dr. Stern describe his personal mission in attending the retreat in Part I: “A Guest of Poland,” Chapter 3?

(see the answer keys)

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