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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. What is Olsufy Ivanovich’s disability?

2. Which of these things does Golyadkin NOT shop for?

3. Where is Golyadkin before he enters the banquet?

4. How does Dostoevsky characterize Golyadkin’s personality?

5. What does Krestyan Ivanovich tell Golyadkin he has to do?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Golyadkin’s shipping trip to Gostiny Dvor.

2. Describe Golyadkin’s entrance into Olsufy Ivanovich’s banquet.

3. Describe Golyadkin’s relationship with Petrushka.

4. Describe Golyadkin’s arrival at work the morning after the banquet.

5. Describe the action that takes place among the characters at the banquet in the beginning of Chapter 4.

6. What rhetorical stance does the narrator take in describing the banquet at Olsufy Ivanovich’s house, and what is the effect of this stance for the reader?

7. Where does Golyadkin go after leaving Olsufy Ivanovich’s house?

8. What is Golyadkin’s purpose in getting into Olsufy Ivanovich’s banquet?

9. What is Golyadkin’s sense as he chases the stranger?

10. Describe the reader’s introduction to Yakov Petrovich Golyadkin.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Dostoevsky characterize Yakov Petrovich Golyadkin? Is he a sympathetic character? Is he realistic? Is he an Everyman? Is he a symbol of something? Using examples from the text, describe Dostoevsky’s accomplishment in creating Golyadkin.

Essay Topic 2

Describe the process of reading The Double. What themes does Dostoevsky weave through the text? What clues does he drop throughout?

Essay Topic 3

What is the role of women in Petersburg society, and in Golyadkin’s life? How does Dostoevsky describe the women in The Double? How is their society different from men’s?

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