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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. What did Orwell say about the Corporation housing as a whole?
(a) "Ruthless and soulless."
(b) "Demeaning and horrific."
(c) "Comfortable and personal."
(d) "Adequate and personalized."

2. What were "caravan dwellings?"
(a) Trailers for the government workers in the city.
(b) Trailers that were brought in after the war for housing.
(c) Traveling circus employees' tent cities.
(d) Housing set up for criminals.

3. How many people shared the bedroom in which Orwell slept at the Brookers?
(a) Three.
(b) Four.
(c) Seven.
(d) Five.

4. What did Old Jack say every night when he went to bed?
(a) "Good night, boys!"
(b) "Tomorrow's comin'."
(c) "Sleep warm, then."
(d) "Till the morrow!"

5. How many tons of coal were moved on the conveyor belt every minute?
(a) One ton.
(b) Millions of pounds.
(c) Several tons.
(d) Hundreds of pounds.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the first thing a miner does when he comes up from the mine?

2. What is one superstition miner sometimes hold to?

3. What was the major difference between a mile above ground and a mile in the pit bottom?

4. What was one common characteristic of all of the houses Orwell saw in industrial towns?

5. How did D. H. Lawrence come to Orwell's mind as he rode the train?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Orwell leave the Brookers? Where did he go? How did he respond to his train trip leaving town?

2. Describe the meals Orwell was offered while living at the Brookers. Who cooked the meals? What were the boarders given to eat for dinner?

3. How did a miner clean up upon returning home? Why was cleaning up after work such a difficult task?

4. What were some of the common conditions in the houses Orwell studied for his book?

5. What were the two largest causes of death to a miner on the job? What were the causes of these hazards?

6. What is nystagmus? How is it contracted? How is it cured? What happened to a miner in Orwell's time who contracted nystagmus?

7. What were the caravan dwellings Orwell speaks about in his book? How many were there in Wigan? What were the living conditions in these caravan dwelling?

8. Why did Orwell make the comparison between the miner's wages and the amount of coal and money the coal mines produce? What did he want the reader to understand?

9. Who were the newspaper canvassers, and what were their jobs?

10. Orwell stated that the Brookers were typical of most people in the modern world. What characteristics did he point out as typical?

(see the answer keys)

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