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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Ronald was adamant that Edith become what?

2. Without Edith, Ronald focused his entire life around what?

3. Many people question how Tolkien could create a mythology without a clear presence of ________ considering his devout Catholic faith.

4. What was Ronald's group of friends and fellow students unofficially named?

5. Mabel notices that Ronald is a bright student who is interested in what?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Edith feel when Ronald was called back to duty?

2. What happened to T.C.B.S. after graduation?

3. Why did Edith live away from Ronald for a period of time?

4. When does Mabel arrive in South Africa? What takes place at the time of their wedding?

5. How does the Tolkien family end up in Leeds?

6. Why is Arthur Tolkien in South Africa?

7. Why is Mabel worried about providing for her children?

8. Why is Ronald allowed to contact Edith? What did Ronald learn about Edith?

9. How does Ronald spend his final year at King Edward's?

10. How does Mabel feel about Bloemfontein? How does she act in regards to her feelings? Why does she act this way?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Tolkien was a perfectionist in many ways.

Part 1) Describe Tolkien's creative process. How does this reinforce his perfectionist tendencies? Is he a perfectionist outside of his work? Why or why not?

Part 2) How did he perfectionist behavior affect others, such as his family, friends, and publishers?

Part 3) How did his desire for perfection add challenges to the process of creating and publishing his work? How did it also benefit him in the long run? Should he have been such a perfectionist? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Tolkien and Edith have four children.

Part 1) Who are their children? How does the birth of these children affect the Tolkiens and their relationship with each other? How influential are the Tolkiens in the children's lives?

Part 2) How important do these children become in Tolkien's life? Why? How important are these children to Tolkien's work? Why?

Part 3) How influential are your parents in your own life? How do you also influence and change them? How does this compare to the Tolkien family?

Essay Topic 3

World War I greatly affects Tolkien.

Part 1) What happens during this war to affect Tolkien and his family? How might this compare to how the war affected others throughout the world?

Part 2) How might the events surrounding World War I have influenced Tolkien's work? Explain. How might the war have affected other aspects of life during this time? How might these changes in everyday life have had an influence on Tolkien's work?

Part 3) How has this war affected us today? How different would our world be if World War I had never occurred?

(see the answer keys)

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