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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. Milosz asserts that the man of the New Faith has the greatest fear of what action?

2. The most difficult thing for a man of the New Faith to conquer, according to Milosz, is his feeling of what?

3. When did Alpha became a more religious writer?

4. Witkiewicz's book dealt solely with what aspect of society?

5. How does Metaphysical Ketman treat man's mind?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the difference between Eastern and Western Communists?

2. Is Ketman necessary to the citizen of the New Faith? Why?

3. Why does the man entering the gate of communism feel that he is doing something wrong?

4. Several times, Milosz describes bombed Warsaw as the cratered moon. How is this significant?

5. Why is it important that man not only be free from something but also for something?

6. The East uses talented artists to their full ability, yet sometimes with mediocre results. Why does this happen?

7. Why, according to party policy, can there be no contradictions in the minds of Soviet citizens?

8. Why is cosmopolitanism linked to nationalist concerns? What does the center gain by connecting these?

9. How does Ketman create pride in the man who practices it?

10. Why is the Ketman of revolutionary purity the most rare form of Ketman?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Milosz asserts that the way to rule a nation's mind is through the word. Is this true or are there other factors equally important? Given what he says about both Nazi and communist controls over the printed word, how was this played out in Poland?

Essay Topic 2

Through Party propaganda and education, communism suppresses man's ability to think for himself. How do the people presented in The Captive Mind either fight or accept this suppression? Consider only the main subjects of the book, including their writing for the underground or for the party.

Essay Topic 3

Though many human interactions are characterized by some degree of acting, the citizens of Soviet countries are forced to take this to an extreme. What does this tell us about the relationship between communist ideals and the individual? What should the role of government be in an individual's life? To what degree is this a perversion of how it should be? Or is this justified in the name of communist ideals?

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