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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Seneca, who doesn't care if he is rich or poor?
(a) A philosopher.
(b) A public official.
(c) A Christian priest.
(d) A pagan priest.

2. What is an oxymoron?
(a) A combination of contradictory words or phrases.
(b) A theory related to oxygen.
(c) Someone who does not practice virtue at all.
(d) Someone who does not understand Oxystoicism.

3. How long does it take Seneca to read the book he mentions in Letter XLVI?
(a) One week.
(b) One sitting.
(c) One year.
(d) One month.

4. According to Letter XL, what clue do people give as to whether they are organized or disorganized?
(a) How their house or apartment looks.
(b) A glance at one's kitchen.
(c) Their hairstyle and grooming.
(d) How fast or slow they talk.

5. What topic does Seneca discuss in Letter XL?
(a) Speech.
(b) Love.
(c) Money.
(d) Death.

6. According to Seneca, what does an inordinate attachment to wealth or public opinion make a man?
(a) Miserable.
(b) Happy.
(c) A politician.
(d) Lucky.

7. Seneca says that a philosopher must distinguish himself from others with virtue, but what must the philosopher obey when doing so?
(a) Society's conventions.
(b) No one.
(c) The emperor and no one else.
(d) Seneca's laws.

8. What ailment, according to Letter LIV, has become very serious for Seneca?
(a) Irregular heart beat.
(b) Indigestion.
(c) A tumor in his throat.
(d) Asthma.

9. What does Seneca say happens to life when one focuses too much on trivial and fleeting activities?
(a) It ends earlier.
(b) It causes much sickness.
(c) It is fulfilled with recreation.
(d) It becomes meaningless and not worth living.

10. How does noise affect Seneca's ability to study?
(a) He is very distracted by noise from crowds.
(b) It does not affect it at all.
(c) He has a hearing disability and is slightly distracted by a constant, steady hum.
(d) He is very distracted by the smallest noise.

11. According to Seneca, what must one seek between extremes in all matters?
(a) Balance.
(b) Kindness.
(c) Love.
(d) Truth.

12. What kinds of noises are more distracting, according to Senenca?
(a) Noises of crickets.
(b) Continuous noises.
(c) Intermittent noises.
(d) Musical noises.

13. What kind of people does Seneca warn Lucilius to steer clear of in Letter XLVIII?
(a) Wealthy rulers.
(b) Quibblers.
(c) Drunken people.
(d) Slaves.

14. Who says in Chapter XVII that wise men should avoid the festival that is being celebrated?
(a) Epicurious.
(b) Lucilious.
(c) No one.
(d) Seneca.

15. Who advises that one ought to imagine being watched by some great, virtuous figure at all times in order to check one's own behavior?
(a) Plato.
(b) Aristotle.
(c) Epicurius.
(d) Seneca.

Short Answer Questions

1. How should an owner be seen by his slaves, according to Seneca?

2. What does Seneca recommend avoiding in Letter VII?

3. What is an example of unrehearsed communication?

4. What is the specific distraction Seneca discusses in Letter XL?

5. What does Seneca say cannot be learned only through reading?

(see the answer keys)

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