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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does White describe himself as a child?
(a) Nervous and fretful.
(b) Neither nervous nor fretful.
(c) Fretful, but not nervous.
(d) Nervous, but not fretful.

2. How does White categorize his debate with the New York Herald Tribune?
(a) Pointless.
(b) Ridiculous.
(c) Astonishing.
(d) Confusing.

3. How does White describe Adolph Ochs, publisher of the New York Times?
(a) Both interested and interesting.
(b) Interested, but not interesting.
(c) Neither interesting nor interested.
(d) Interesting, but not interested.

4. How much is White paid for his column, "One Man's Meat", for Harper's Magazine?
(a) Three hundred dollars per month.
(b) Five hundred dollars per week.
(c) Five hundred dollars per month.
(d) Three hundred dollars per week.

5. In a newsbreak report to Harold Ross, how long does it take White to locate the paste?
(a) Two minutes.
(b) Eight minutes.
(c) Six minutes.
(d) Four minutes.

6. What activities is White's son enjoying at Cornell?
(a) Football and naval architecture.
(b) Soccer and archery.
(c) Soccer and naval architecture.
(d) Football and archery.

7. What is the mood of White's January 8, 1938 letter to James Thurber?
(a) Inspired.
(b) Excited.
(c) Depressed.
(d) Indifferent.

8. In which hospital is White staying when he writes to his friend, Jim Wright?
(a) St. Vincent's Hospital.
(b) St. Barnabas Hospital.
(c) St. Luke's Hospital.
(d) St. Mary's Hospital.

9. What poet does White parody in a December, 1918 letter to his mother?
(a) Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
(b) T.S. Eliot.
(c) Robert Frost.
(d) Robert Browning.

10. What section of the American freedoms pamphlet is White originally hired to write, before being asked to rewrite the entire document?
(a) The section on Freedom of the Press.
(b) The section on Freedom of Speech.
(c) The section on the Pursuit of Happiness.
(d) The section on the Right to Bear Arms.

11. What event prompts White to write the director of the Bronx Zoo?
(a) A newborn tiger running around.
(b) An exotic bird's unique feeding habits.
(c) A newborn doe getting to its feet.
(d) A lion's exceptionally loud roar.

12. When does White submit the manuscript for Stuart Little to his agent?
(a) April, 1940.
(b) March, 1939.
(c) June, 1939.
(d) July, 1940.

13. What does White expect the project in Washington to be?
(a) A short project.
(b) A worthwhile project.
(c) A long project.
(d) A patriotic project.

14. Writing under a nom de plume, what does White express concern over?
(a) The disappearance of the American touring car.
(b) The changes in the design of sailing boats.
(c) The excessive number of movie critics.
(d) The lack of quality news stories.

15. How many years do White and Katharine spend in Greenwich Village?
(a) Four.
(b) Two.
(c) Six.
(d) Eight.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to White's letter to Katharine, what is "man's ancient privilege"?

2. What possible excuse does White provide for the New Yorker's ignorance in his humorous letter of outrage in 1945?

3. According to White's second rebuttal to the New York Herald Tribune, what is the best way to preserve American freedoms?

4. What does White befriend while vacationing in a small shack?

5. What type of background did White's mother have?

(see the answer keys)

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