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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What did Fedya call Platonov in "The Snake Charmer"?
(a) Ivan.
(b) Russian.
(c) Michael.
(d) Igor.

2. Whose job was it to run the bathhouse and disinfect clothes at the work camps?
(a) The work-men from the barracks.
(b) The Sanitation Squad.
(c) The section commanders.
(d) The Bathhouse Squad.

3. What did the narrator say was the only thing that a prisoner would wash if he were only allotted a spoonful of water to bathe?
(a) His ears.
(b) His nose.
(c) His eyes.
(d) His mouth.

4. What was Glebov's old occupation before being sent to the camps?
(a) A carpenter.
(b) A lawyer.
(c) A doctor.
(d) A dentist.

5. What did the narrator compare the hills to in "A Pushover Job"?
(a) Frosted glass.
(b) Sugar cookies.
(c) Loaves of sugar.
(d) Clouds.

6. What did Bagretsov cut his finger on as he lay on the ground near Glebov?
(a) A branch.
(b) A rock.
(c) A knife.
(d) A zipper.

7. What did the narrator, in "Sententious," claim that each day brought?
(a) The renewed hope of life.
(b) The desire to die.
(c) The danger of a "lurch into death."
(d) The urge to escape.

8. How long had Merzlakov been in the camp (according to "Shock Therapy")?
(a) Six days.
(b) A year and a half.
(c) Two years.
(d) One year.

9. What was the only way that prisoners could stand by the stove in "Quiet"?
(a) To warm their soup.
(b) To dry bread.
(c) To dry shoes.
(d) To dry their hands.

10. What did the narrator claim was "a relative concept"? ("In the Bathhouse")
(a) Eating.
(b) Infestation.
(c) Lamenting.
(d) Wishes.

11. For Potashnikov, how long did his breakfast sustain his work? ("Carpenters.")
(a) 120 minutes.
(b) 90 Minutes.
(c) One hour.
(d) 150 minutes.

12. What did Pesniakevich's mother own in Minsk? ("Prosthetic Appliances.")
(a) A whore-house.
(b) A bookstore.
(c) A coffee shop.
(d) A laundry.

13. What did the two men, from "A Pushover Job," place into the bag of pine needles?
(a) A rabbit.
(b) A stick.
(c) A watch.
(d) A stone.

14. How many men were standing in the corridor awaiting a strip search? ("Prosthetic Appliances.")
(a) 12.
(b) 6.
(c) 3.
(d) 8.

15. What story did the men at the fire NOT want to hear Platonov tell? (The Snake Charmer.")
(a) "The Count of Montecristo."
(b) "The Club of Black Jacks."
(c) "The Vampire."
(d) "Utopia."

Short Answer Questions

1. Why did Kurchen write his letter with his left hand instead of his right?

2. What was the last thing that Golubev said in "A Piece of Meat"?

3. In "Carpenters," for how long had the fog been so thick that a man was not able to be seen from "two paces away"?

4. What did the narrator say "materialized out of nowhere"? ("Sententious.")

5. What did the sectarian need his extra portion of food to do? ("Quiet.")

(see the answer keys)

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