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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. Where were the prisoners who were sent into exile relocated to?

2. On which anniversary of it being abolished for the first time, was capital punishment again abolished for all but military crimes?

3. What is another word for the trains that brought prisoners out to exile?

4. Which of the following men is described as "the only Russian crazy enough to return without authorization"?

5. Who were Zeks?

Short Essay Questions

1. What types of prisoners were separated from the native population at Gulag?

2. Why were six peasants shot in Tsarskoe Selo, and what was the response from the public?

3. Why did women sometimes go crazy when they found a scrap of paper in the transit camps?

4. What were stolypins?

5. How did prisoners figure out where they were being relocated, particularly when being sent into exile?

6. Why was capital punishment banned in 1920?

7. What was the All-Russian Central Executive Committee?

8. What did prisoners eat when they were being transported from one prison to another?

9. What did Lenin say to Gorky about the intelligentsia of Russia?

10. How were toilet trips managed when transporting passengers?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

During their interrogation periods, many prisoners were tortured by the guards. First, list at least five ways that prisoners were tortured, and what information guards hoped to elicit from these methods. Then, explain how torture led to false imprisonments and wrongful sentencing.

Essay Topic 2

Joseph Stalin was, perhaps, the strongest force in keeping the Gulag prison system in effect for as long as it was. First, explain why Stalin created Gulag to begin with and how he fought to keep the camp system running alongside his vision. Next, explain the reaction to Stalin's death in the camps and what changes were made in Gulag following Stalin's passing.

Essay Topic 3

In his memoir, Solzhenitsyn gives very specific descriptions about the soldiers who were a part of the mass arrests leading to the overflow of prisoners in Gulag. What types of men were typically arresting soldiers during this time? What was specific about the arresting soldiers' uniforms? What does Solzhenitsyn remember most about the guards who arrested him?

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