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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. Why did Beta's writing assert that communism was salvation?

2. When do Beta's stories show that people are good?

3. What was the end result of Gamma's poetry?

4. As the Polish fought the Germans for control of Warsaw near the end of the war, how did a few people manage to survive?

5. According to Chapter 8, how does communism define the reactionary?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the party's definition of a reactionary reduce him to a comic level?

2. How was Delta able to play the game that the center demanded of him--and be better at it?

3. Beta's anger toward mankind became directed toward a fear of self-deception. How did this happen?

4. Milosz writes that Delta could not (or would not) distinguish between truth and fable, even in his personal life. Is this the kind of mind the Party would have wanted?

5. Rather than blaming these four men for the choices they made, Milosz says they were slaves to history. How is this true?

6. Nearly six years of Nazi rule had radically changed people's ideas of private property. Did this help or harm the communist idea of common property?

7. In Chapter VIII, Milosz takes on the tone of a communist to describe the evils of the various classes. How is this more powerful than a mere description?

8. Why is Gamma called "the slave of history"? Whose interests does he serve?

9. Why does Milosz go to such pains to describe Gamma, when the other writers found in his book are given only a few sentences of description?

10. Delta, in wandering the roads in France, met people from many different nations. How did this universal migration prepare the way even more for communist rule?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

This question has been growing throughout the book: Why does Milosz write? As you answer, consider the writer's responsibility in the world, and the responsibility of a man who has witnessed great evil. Intellectually and ethically, did Milosz make the right choice to write what he saw?

Essay Topic 2

Given the examples only of these four men, what is your impression of communism? Is it possible to get a good idea of both communist ideals and its reality by reading about their lives? Use examples from their chapters to illustrate your thoughts.

Essay Topic 3

Beta's stories portray man as an animal, barely held in check by the restraints of civilization. How is this demonstrated in Poland during World War II? Given the progression of Poland through capitalism, Nazism, and communism, was man's good or animal side stronger? Which one triumphed? Also, use examples from the book of people acting out of goodness.

(see the answer keys)

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