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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. Many of Rumi's poems reveal that life is not two-dimensional; on the contrary, it is very:

2. After reading Rumi's poems, Coleman Barks feels he has been:

3. "Cry Out In Your Weakness" is a poem about:

4. When was Rumi born?

5. What is the "animal soul" that Rumi writes about?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Coleman Barks associated with Rumi?

2. Describe the "short story" model Rumi uses for many of his poems.

3. Use the "me and you" example in this section to address Rumi's thoughts on identity.

4. Explain how Rumi uses the metaphor of a string when discussing the bonds of friendship in his writings about a frog and a mouse.

5. Who were Rumi's three best friends, and how did he regard each?

6. Explain the disappearances of Rumi's friend, Shams.

7. What does Coleman Barks mean when he indicates that part of his experience of perceiving Rumi's poems is transcendental?

8. 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?

9. How does Rumi refer to his friends in the poems within Book 1, Chapter 3?

10. How do Coleman Barks' preambles prepare the reader?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What important lessons come through in the poem "Town and Country"? Describe the friendship between the two friends in this story. When the tables are turned and the shopkeeper gets to walk in the countryside man's shoes, how are his eyes opened? What does he finally see, after so many years, about the suffering his friend experienced when he first arrived in town?

Essay Topic 2

Explain how at times, Rumi ventures into the darker aspects of the world to illuminate higher spiritual truths. Refer to some of his short stories and his metaphors to address this topic.

Essay Topic 3

Analyze what the poet says and infers with regards to ethics. Then, compare and contrast some of his ideas with modern-day ethics thinking. Use examples from his poems to support your observations.

(see the answer keys)

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