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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Gardner writes in Chapter 2 that in a bad workshop, the teacher takes the place of the student's what?

2. What does M.F.A. stand for?

3. In Chapter 2, Gardner writes that writing, "like the study of classical piano, is not practical but _____."

4. Gardner compares the first thrill of achievement of the writer to that of an oboist or what?

5. What experimental writer does Gardner mention having been moved and delighted by in Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Gardner say in the beginning of Chapter 2 regarding author education and state funding?

2. What does Gardner write of the standard technique of teaching writing in Chapter 2?

3. What does Gardner open Chapter 3 with, regarding the young writer's focus on publication?

4. What brings the author feelings of virtue in Chapter 2?

5. Why must a teacher avoid projecting their aesthetic view on writers?

6. What are some of the qualities that should make an aspiring writer leave a program?

7. What does Gardner remark about the loyalty of an editor?

8. What does Gardner say of finding support for the author in Chapter 3?

9. Describe some of the qualities of bad writing workshops in Chapter 2.

10. Where does the author's manuscript go after he reviews the copywriter's corrections?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the exceptions that Gardner makes in reference to James Joyce, Franz Kafka, and Samuel Beckett. What in their writing differs from the traditional and still "works"?

Essay Topic 2

What does Gardner mean in Chapter 1 when he refers to "verbal sensitivity"? What does this phrase mean and not mean to the author?

Essay Topic 3

Describe the biographical history of John Gardner. How did he come to writing? What was his childhood like? Where did he study?

(see the answer keys)

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