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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When did Helena move to Prague?
(a) 1949.
(b) 1939.
(c) 1959.
(d) 1945.

2. When Ludvik sits down to have a shave, what does he do?
(a) Talk to the girl shaving him right away.
(b) Avoid the mirror and look at the ceiling.
(c) Check his appearance in the mirror.
(d) Start a conversation with the man in the chair next to him.

3. Who narrates part three of "The Joke"?
(a) Ostrava.
(b) Marketa.
(c) Ludvik.
(d) Lucie.

4. How long did the wedding festivities last between Zemanek and Helena?
(a) Ten hours.
(b) Twenty-four hours.
(c) Two days.
(d) Three hours.

5. Ludvik and Kostka sit in Kostka's flat before he has to go back to the hospital and chat over what?
(a) Vodka.
(b) Tea.
(c) Juice.
(d) Coffee.

6. Helena claims she would do anything to save her marriage. Why?
(a) For her own sake, for the sake of the past.
(b) For her daughter, for honor.
(c) For the Party.
(d) For Zemanek.

7. What was Helena doing at the age of eighteen?
(a) In the gallows.
(b) Espionage.
(c) Schoolwork.
(d) Raising her child.

8. How does Zdena feel about Zemanek?
(a) She is impartial to him.
(b) She likes him enough to get by.
(c) She worships him.
(d) She loathes him.

9. How does the narrator view the town square of his hometown after his long absence?
(a) He finds it changed from his memory.
(b) He finds it charming.
(c) He finds it beautiful.
(d) He finds it unsightly.

10. Though Ludvik claims to not be a big lover of poetry, he carried three books of poetry with him. Who was the poet that authored these books?
(a) Pavel Zajicek.
(b) MIlan Rufus.
(c) Andre Brenton.
(d) Frantisek Halas.

11. How many empty chairs are at the barber where Ludvik goes to get a shave?
(a) Two.
(b) One.
(c) Three.
(d) Four.

12. What organ does Helena have trouble with, under the slightest bit of exertion?
(a) Her heart.
(b) Her brain.
(c) Her lungs.
(d) Her stomach.

13. What floor does Kostka live on?
(a) The second floor.
(b) The fourth floor.
(c) The third floor.
(d) The fifth floor.

14. What is the name of the woman who shaves Ludvik?
(a) Katka.
(b) Helena.
(c) Lucie.
(d) Jana.

15. According to Ludvik, what kind of woman is Marketa?
(a) She can't settle down.
(b) She takes everything seriously.
(c) She is always joking around.
(d) She separates work and home really well.

Short Answer Questions

1. Zemanek and Helena were together for nearly two years when what happened?

2. What does Helena claim she is looking for?

3. After Ludvik's meeting with the board he is prompted by a Communist friend to go see who?

4. As a student, where did Ludvik hold an important post?

5. What is the name of the man Ludvik asks for at the booth at the gate of the hospital?

(see the answer keys)

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