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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. When was Jose Luis Borges born?

2. Robert Louis Stevenson is today best known for what type of writings?

3. What title did Thurber give to his humorous autobiographical essay?

4. What was George Orwell's real name?

5. What do Seymour Krim and Mary McCarthy have in common?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kind of literature did Virginia Woolf write? What was a common focus that united her work?

2. Describe the important events in Lu Hsun's life that impacted his personal essays.

3. What is Orwell's "Such, Such Were the Joys..." about? What complaints does Orwell have about the subject?

4. What is the subject of Junichiro Tanizaki's "In Praise of Shadows?" What hope does Tanizaki express at the end of the essay?

5. What subject dominated the writings of George Orwell? Name three specific things George Orwell wrote about.

6. What two works of G. K. Chesterton are included in this volume? What are the subjects of these essays?

7. What views is Henry David Thoreau well known for? How did he believe one should live one's life?

8. What is the subject of F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Crack-Up?" What extended metaphor does he use?

9. Describe Walter Benjamin's unfortunate end. How does his essay "Unpacking My Library" relate to this tragic end?

10. What level of literary output did G. K. Chesterton achieve in his lifetime?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Nature and solitude converge in the essays "The Entrance to the Woods" by Wendell Berry and "The Solitude of the Country" by Samuel Johnson.

A) What is valuable/important to each man about nature? Are these views compatible?

B) How does solitude impact the experience of nature in both essays?

C) Compare the tones in the essays.

Essay Topic 2

Ivan Turgenev in "The Execution of Tropmann" and Seneca in "Slaves" both share strong opinions on slaves/servants.

A) What did each man reveal about the nature of "the slave and the servant" in his essay?

B) What did each man reveal about the nature of "the master" in his essay?

C) Compare the two philosophies. Are they compatible?

Essay Topic 3

Annie Dillard utilizes an unusual writing style in her work.

A) Analyze "Seeing." What are the features of Dillard's writing style? What makes this style unusual?

B) How might Dillard's writing style relate to her view of the world? Why is she using this style? And why is it appropriate for the content of her essay?

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