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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why does Seneca say he decided not to commit suicide?
(a) He snapped out of his depression.
(b) He fell in love with a woman.
(c) For his father's sake.
(d) He was too afraid.

2. Why does Seneca say he considered suicide once?
(a) He didn't feel loved or needed by society.
(b) To escape his illness.
(c) He felt worthless.
(d) Out of consideration for his parents.

3. Who wrote the Aeneid?
(a) Homer.
(b) Petronius.
(c) Seneca.
(d) Virgil.

4. Who does Seneca point out (in Letter CIV) had a wife and children who constantly nagged him?
(a) Sophocles.
(b) Socrates.
(c) Plato.
(d) Himself.

5. Who says there are five causes?
(a) Aristotle.
(b) Sophocles.
(c) Seneca.
(d) Plato.

6. According to Seneca, what often brings the most unusual tragedies?
(a) Emotion.
(b) Freedom.
(c) Superstition.
(d) Fortune.

7. What phrase best sums up Letter XCI?
(a) The early bird catches the worm.
(b) Expect the unexpected.
(c) Never look back.
(d) If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

8. Why does Seneca praise suicide?
(a) He likes to challenge the legal system.
(b) He is tired of being sick.
(c) To cut back on medical needs of the community.
(d) It is active, not passive.

9. When does Seneca say that men that began to claim pieces of land as their property?
(a) When gods told them to do so.
(b) When they became more self-aware.
(c) When greed entered the hearts of mankind.
(d) When the emperor began giving it away.

10. What kind of events does Seneca say upsets people the most?
(a) Planned events.
(b) Hysterical events.
(c) Surprise events.
(d) Calm events.

11. What is the unusual transgression about, ending Letter LXXXVI?
(a) Transplanting trees.
(b) Transplanting human organs.
(c) Transplanting flowers.
(d) Transplanting sheep organs.

12. Where is Seneca when he writes Letter LXXXVI?
(a) On vacation.
(b) In bed at home recuperating.
(c) At Lucilius' house.
(d) In the hospital.

13. In Letter LXXXIII, whose logic does Seneca question?
(a) Zeno's.
(b) Aristotle's.
(c) Plato's.
(d) Sappho's.

14. According to Letter LXXXVIII, how important is the knowledge of the liberal arts to Stoicism?
(a) More important than even religion.
(b) Not at all.
(c) Very important.
(d) Vital - can't understand Stoicism without a full liberal arts background.

15. What affects Seneca's exercise time according to Letter LXXXIII?
(a) The amount of time he studies.
(b) His lack of interest.
(c) His old age.
(d) His lack of time.

Short Answer Questions

1. What tends to either not last very long or to at least have periods of subsidence?

2. How can a person be prepared for any tragedy that might happen?

3. According to his criticism in Letter CVIII, what does Seneca say literary scholars do with philosophical theories?

4. What does Seneca say that many people find attractive for the wrong reasons?

5. In his example of suffering for the sake of knowledge, who does Seneca say was executed for blasphemy?

(see the answer keys)

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