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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. In "At Christmastime", whom does Vasilisa ask to help her write a letter to her daughter?
(a) The tavern keeper.
(b) Yegor.
(c) Her husband.
(d) The cook.

2. Why do the wedding dressmakers cry?
(a) Anisim ruins the dresses during a drunken fit.
(b) Varvara and Aksinya yell at them for their work.
(c) Grigory pays them in sardines and candles instead of cash.
(d) Grigory pays them in counterfeit.

3. Why do the women in town get excited about Belikov's life?
(a) Belikov inherits a fortune.
(b) They want to arrange a marriage for him.
(c) Belikov is promoted to a privy councilor.
(d) One of the daughters falls in love with Belikov.

4. Why does Vladimir leave Olga?
(a) She is too overbearing and suffocating.
(b) He is fired from work and must find another post.
(c) His regiment leaves town.
(d) He finds another woman.

5. What does Korolev assume about factory workers?
(a) They are honest hard workers.
(b) They are drunkards and ignorant.
(c) They are there because of karma.
(d) They are lucky to have a job.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Anna Sergeevna fear when she starts relations with Gurov?

2. What is strange about Belikov in "The Man in a Case"?

3. Why does Zhenya discontinue seeing the artist?

4. What causes the beadle to be so poor?

5. In, "In the Ravine", what is the village Ukleyevo known for?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Korolev show judgment on the Lialikovs?

2. How does Katya show how she feels about Pyotr's status as a bishop?

3. According to Ivan Ivanych, what is the balance of sadness and happiness in the world?

4. How is Pyotr different as a person and as a bishop?

5. In "On Official Business", why does the coroner believe the city is the center of Russia? What does he think of the village and countryside?

6. In "On Official Business", what is the difference between the coroner and the doctor in the way they view life?

7. Dr. Starchenko from "On Official Business" mentions old folks disliking this "nervous age." What might this "nervous age" refer to?

8. What is the root cause of Liza's illness?

9. In "At Christmastime", Vasilisa writes a letter to her daughter after four years of not seeing her. Why does Vasilisa take such care in her choice of words?

10. In "On Official Business", the coroner has a dream about the beadle and the Zemstvo walking side by side. Write a brief interpretation of this dream.

(see the answer keys)

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