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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. During the argument between Jaromil and the party guest, why do the other guests burst out laughing?
(a) Jaromil has tripped over a coffee table and fallen.
(b) The party guest has picked up Jaromil by his shirt and pants waist.
(c) Jaromil has tripped over a coffee table and fallen.
(d) Jaromil has punched the party guest in the face.

2. What is the redhead's reaction to Jaromil's poetry printed in the newspaper?
(a) She had not even known he wrote poetry.
(b) She was thrilled to have a famous boyfriend.
(c) She did not understand the poem.
(d) She thought he was wasting his time.

3. Returning home from the police station, what does Jaromil find?
(a) A letter from his uncle who was sent to prison several years earlier.
(b) A letter from the redhead breaking up with him.
(c) An invitation from the cinematographer to attend a party.
(d) A letter of praise from the janitor's son about his poetry.

4. What happens during the second half of Jaromil's poetry recitation?
(a) He loses his place on the page and becomes flustered.
(b) Lights come on and a camera starts rolling.
(c) The pretty cinematographer throws a rose to him.
(d) The audience gives him a standing ovation so he has to stop reading.

5. When Maman returns home early one evening while the redhead is visiting, what does she pretend is happening?
(a) The redhead is having cramps and needs her help.
(b) She is having a heart attack in the kitchen.
(c) She is sick and needs Jaromil to take care of her.
(d) Jaromil is disobeying a house rule and the redhead must leave.

Short Answer Questions

1. To Jaromil, what does Xavier represent?

2. What location is Maman most excited to film in?

3. After the girl rejects the man's caresses, what does she wish he were?

4. Why does the newspaper editor not want to publish Jaromil's poems?

5. When Jaromil has difficulty undressing the redhead, what is the girl wearing?

Short Essay Questions

1. Kundera says that the young person can be so loyally devoted to an idea because he believes in absolutes (Part 5, Chapter 6, pg 220). How does this fit with Jaromil's personality?

2. The group of poets, Jaromil among them, is invited to speak at the police academy in the countryside. What is the irony of this situation and what does it say about the ideals they espouse?

3. What happens when Jaromil recites his poems to the audience of police members? How does this compare to the hopes he has had?

4. After a period of estrangement from Maman, why is Jaromil ready to make peace with her? How do the two of them have very different perceptions of this reconciliation?

5. "History does not always make a dramatic entrance, it often seeps through every-day life like dirty dishwater. In our story, History makes its appearance in the guise of underwear" (Part 5, Chapter 8, pg 239). What does this mean in the context of Jaromil's story?

6. Near the end of the book, Xavier betrays Jaromil by leaving him behind. What is the significance of this scene?

7. During the party at the cinematography girl's apartment, how does Jaromil's clothing reflect his state of mind?

8. "Only a real poet knows how lonely it is inside the mirrored house of poetry" (Part 7, Chapter 1, pg 289). Where else does the reader see mirrors in the story, and how does this sentence relate to Jaromil's life?

9. What arguments do Jaromil and the redhead have concerning their families? How does this illustrate Jaromil's juvenile mindset?

10. Maman is disillusioned about the cinematography girl after the girl does not invite her to the party. How does this show the similarity between Maman and the girl?

(see the answer keys)

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