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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the donjon of the Count's Castle used for?
(a) It is home to many merchant families.
(b) Ceremonies and jousting tournaments.
(c) To imprison political prisoners and debtors.
(d) Baptisms.

2. What is a superstition about childbirth mentioned in the text?
(a) The woman's face is covered with a cloth during childbirth, as it is considered ill fortune for a woman to witness the birth of her own child.
(b) Very particular lute music is played prior to and during birth, so the child will not be born deaf.
(c) A jongleur is made to attend the birth to ensure the child has a happy rather than sad disposition.
(d) The time of birth must be recorded exactly, which can be used to predict the child's future.

3. Which of the following is NOT done in the counting room?
(a) Cooking.
(b) Accounting.
(c) Greeting of customers.
(d) Bookkeeping.

4. Why is it wise to restrict a baby's movements after birth, according to medieval wisdom?
(a) A moving baby will make for an impetuous, nervous adult.
(b) A moving baby might twist and deform its own limbs.
(c) The various humors (fluids) in a baby must have time to settle.
(d) Demons will be able to more easily track a moving baby.

5. When is a child baptized ideally?
(a) At two weeks' of age.
(b) On the first day of birth.
(c) At one year of age.
(d) On their fifth birthday.

6. How is time kept throughout the day in Troyes?
(a) The church rings bells every hour on the hour.
(b) The church rings bells at three-hour intervals.
(c) The Count's Castle has an official timekeeper.
(d) A large sundial in the middle of town is referred to.

7. The wool in Troyes primarily comes from which region?
(a) Italy.
(b) North Africa.
(c) England.
(d) Persia.

8. How many leper's colonies existed in France around 1250?
(a) Two thousand.
(b) One hundred.
(c) One.
(d) Zero.

9. Who is a wet nurse?
(a) A doctor specializing in the fluids of the body.
(b) A woman who attends to drowning victims.
(c) A magician who lives in the swamp.
(d) A woman who nurses another woman's baby.

10. What is the highest title a merchant can hope to obtain?
(a) Sire.
(b) Esquire.
(c) Duke.
(d) Count.

11. What is "churching?"
(a) The process of going house to house caroling during Christmas.
(b) The process whereby a recently pregnant woman is allowed back into society.
(c) The process of baptizing a stillborn child.
(d) The process involving a lay person joining the church clergy.

12. What does a fuller do?
(a) He treats yarn to give it firmness and body.
(b) He removes wool of its impurities.
(c) He spins cotton into pieces of clothing.
(d) He digs graves.

13. Why do housewives frequently refrain from wearing makeup or wigs?
(a) There is a common fear that such "disguises" bring bad luck.
(b) Burghers prefer their wives to be natural beauties.
(c) The wearing of make up or wigs is frowned upon by the church.
(d) Makeup and wigs contain unhealthy and allergic materials.

14. How often does the typical city dweller in 1250 take a bath?
(a) Once a year.
(b) Once a week.
(c) Once a month.
(d) Once a day.

15. What time period is covered by the book?
(a) From 800 AD to 900 AD.
(b) From the time of Socrates to the time of the American Revolution.
(c) From 250 BC to 800 AD.
(d) From Roman times to the middle of the 13th century.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the church's position on most games and entertainments?

2. Why must the housewife be especially careful in selecting food from the market?

3. What two general sections is Troyes divided into?

4. Which of the following is NOT a step taken in the preparation of a typical dinner?

5. How does a typical woman's education compare with a typical man's education?

(see the answer keys)

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