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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 year was Musil born?

2. What was one of the country's characteristics that had changed that Ulrich noticed in Chapter 21?

3. According to Ulrich in Chapter 11, what was the paradoxical power of engineering?

4. Where did Musil spend most of his life?

5. Which of the following did Diotoma establish in Chapter 25?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Musil's observations of Austrian and German women.

2. Describe Diotoma and Count Leinsdorf's relationship.

3. Describe Arnheim.

4. Describe Arnheim and Diotima's relationship in Chapter 41.

5. What did Ulrich learn about events and characters in Chapter 39?

6. Describe the premise behind Moosbrugger's sentence in Chapter 60.

7. Describe Rachel.

8. During his trial, what conclusions did the judge draw about Moosbrugger?

9. Describe the incident that occured in Chapter 1 that affected Ulrich.

10. In Chapter 19, what did Musil say about the effect of the turn of the Century on people?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Musil employs simple, minimalist, highly-controlled, meticulous yet effective language in contrast with complex language. Both styles employ powerful symbolism. Choose an example of symbolism, briefly describe it, and identify the technique that it embodies.

Essay Topic 2

Select a character whom Ulrich grows to like and become familiar with. How does their relationship evolve?

Essay Topic 3

What is the significance of the title, The Man Without Qualities? How does it relate to the protagonist Ulrich and in particular to the main theme of the book? What did the author mean by titling the book The Man Without Qualities? Cite an example from the book to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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