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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. According to Rumi, how should one treat his or her baser nature?
(a) With kindness.
(b) Cautiously.
(c) With severe strictness.
(d) Passionately.

2. In a poem in Book 1, Chapter 3, Rumi writes about a deer dying in the paws of a:
(a) Wolf.
(b) Lion.
(c) Tiger.
(d) Bear.

3. Rumi's short-story format found in some of his poems is characterized by:
(a) Angelic teachers.
(b) Bizarre characters.
(c) A complete, self-contained story.
(d) A mystical, mysterious story.

4. Rumi asserts that the union between a man and a woman has what associated with it?
(a) Emotional baggage.
(b) Earthly connection.
(c) Hint of sadness.
(d) Spiritual component.

5. According to Rumi, when the individual ego disappears and dissipates into God, this can be understood as what?
(a) True.
(b) False.
(c) Cause for celebration.
(d) Cause for confusion.

Short Answer Questions

1. When speaking to the camel in the story in Book 1, Chapter 3, the mouse admits that it is what?

2. Coleman Barks is famous for what?

3. According to a poem in Book 1, Chapter 2, what happens when you put pond water into a larger body of water?

4. When was Rumi born?

5. What main lesson does Rumi impart through his poem about a man who wants a tattoo in Book 1, Chapter 2?

Short Essay Questions

1. How would you describe Rumi's writing style?

2. Explain Rumi's thoughts on love in comparison to jealousy and fear.

3. How does the role of gender come into play in many of Rumi's poems?

4. With regards to beauty, what important connection does Rumi infer when he references a beautiful woman in the poem about a city being invaded by men driven by sexual desire?

5. What makes Rumi's poems emotionally well integrated?

6. What are the underlying themes in Rumi's poem about sexual passion where a city is invaded and one of the invaders falls in love with a woman there?

7. Summarize the poet's message about the importance of balance with respect to the "animal soul."

8. How is Coleman Barks associated with Rumi?

9. In what ways does God appear in Rumi's poetry?

10. How would one describe the tavern poems?

(see the answer keys)

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