View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. Mrs. Clements was in the same city as Pnin in 1919, what was she doing there?

2. What does Pnin lose while he looks up the proper pronunciation of a word in the dictionary?

3. What happens to Pnin, while he is discussing the poem in Chapter 3, which causes the class to laugh?

4. In Chapter 3, up until this point in his life, what has Pnin always been?

5. What brings Pnin to tears at the end of Chapter 3?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the library request of Pnin in Chapter 3?

2. Why has the daughter of Laurence and Joan Clements left home, and what do they now have available?

3. What does Pnin tell Joan about his background in Chapter 2?

4. Where is Pnin a professor at in Chapter 1?

5. How well does Pnin speak English? Describe in detail.

6. What other people occupy Pnin's coach on the train in Chapter 1?

7. Where is Pnin headed at the beginning of Chapter 1?

8. What happens when Pnin calls the Clementses to rent the room in their house?

9. What poem does Pnin discuss with his class in Chapter 3?

10. What does Pnin almost encounter when he comes down the stairs during the Clementses' party in Chapter 2?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Pnin has many funny quirks, yet he has fears and some self-confidence issues too. Examine the concepts of fear and self-confidence, exploring how they relate to Pnin. What is the definition of fear? How can having fears affect one's self-confidence? What examples from the book demonstrate what Pnin fears? Would Pnin be considered a self-confident man? Where in the book does Pnin demonstrate his self-confidence, almost to his detriment?

Essay Topic 2

Description is the fiction-writing mode for creating a mental image of a story. Examine the use of description in "Pnin". How does the author use narration, dialogue, and imagery to bring his novel to life? What is the best example of the use of description from the novel "Pnin"?

Essay Topic 3

Compare Victor's relationship with his parents to his relationship with Pnin, examining the differences and similarities. What kind of parents are Dr. Wind and Liza? Does Pnin treat Victor as if he is his own son? How does Victor view Pnin compared to his parents? How does Dr. Wind feel about Pnin and Victor having a relationship?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 910 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample