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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 shameless trick does Golyadkin Junior play on Golyadkin, for the second time, in His Excellency’s presence?

2. What is Golyadkin’s sense of what fate has in store for him?

3. What is the outcome of Golyadkin’s appeal to Andrey Filippovich?

4. What does Golyadkin sense in Golyadkin Junior’s arrival?

5. How does Golyadkin Junior greet Golyadkin?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe what happens when Golyadkin reaches Andrey Filippovich’s house.

2. Describe the interview Golyadkin and Golyadkin Junior have in the coffee shop.

3. Describe Golyadkin Junior’s entrance into the office.

4. What is Golyadkin’s explanation for Golyadkin Junior’s existence?

5. What is Golyadkin Junior like when Golyadkin finds him at the office?

6. Describe the intimacy that develops between Golyadkin and Golyadkin Junior.

7. How have things changed when Golyadkin wakes up in the morning after his drunken night with Golyadkin Junior.

8. What is Golyadkin Junior’s demeanor like when he arrives at Golyadkin’s flat?

9. What is the outcome of Golyadkin’s appeal to His Excellency?

10. What is the importance of the letter Golyadkin receives from Klara Olsufyevna?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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

Essay Topic 2

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?

Essay Topic 3

Who is the audience for The Double? What is the ideal reader for The Double likely to think about the book’s main topics? How does this book try to affect the reader? What is it trying to teach him or her, or get him or her to do?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 932 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample