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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How did Merton's parents foster his love for the monastic life?
(a) They disliked anything they considered to be bourgeois.
(b) They introduced him to monks.
(c) They encouraged him to be wealthy.
(d) They bought him many things.

2. What impresses Merton about St. Antonin?
(a) It was laid out in a circular shape in the 13th century.
(b) It was in France.
(c) The house he lived in.
(d) The people he met there.

3. How does Merton react to his first exposure to death?
(a) With fear and sadness.
(b) With despair and foreboding.
(c) With deep terror.
(d) With innocence and curiosity.

4. Who came to visit Merton in 1930?
(a) Pop, Bonnemaman, and John Paul.
(b) Bonnemaman and Pop.
(c) Owen and John Paul.
(d) Pop and Owen.

5. When does Bonnemaman die?
(a) Summer of 1937.
(b) Fall of 1936.
(c) Summer of 1936.
(d) Fall of 1937.

6. What are the contents of the note Merton receives from his father?
(a) A description of his father's travels to Africa.
(b) A goodbye from his mother.
(c) The address of his grandparents.
(d) Instructions for caring for his brother.

7. Who gave Merton his First Communion?
(a) Father McGough at Corpus Christi.
(b) Father Gerdy at St. Patrick's Cathedral.
(c) Father Rice at St. John's.
(d) Father Moore at Corpus Christi.

8. Who are M. and Mme. Privat?
(a) A couple Merton lives with in St. Antonin.
(b) A Catholic couple with whom Merton boards in Murat.
(c) The owners of Merton's favorite restaurant.
(d) The caretakers of the Lycee.

9. What kind of music did Merton especially like when he felt like a rebel in New York?
(a) The jazz of Duke Ellington
(b) Violin concertos
(c) Gregorian chant
(d) Beethoven symphonies

10. What does Merton miss when he left France for England?
(a) The churches.
(b) His house.
(c) The beauty of St. Antonin.
(d) The Lycee.

11. What authors have a particular effect on Merton at university?
(a) Woolf and James.
(b) Chesterton and Snow.
(c) Joyce and Eliot.
(d) Freud and Jung.

12. What class does Merton say is the best he ever took at college?
(a) A philosophy class.
(b) A comparative religion class.
(c) A Shakespeare class.
(d) A physical education class.

13. What words best describe Merton at the university?
(a) Religious and non-political.
(b) Intellectual and contemplative.
(c) Athletic and social.
(d) Romantic and in love.

14. What is the Jester?
(a) A student publication.
(b) A costume Merton wears to a party.
(c) A nickname for Merton's friend.
(d) A card game Merton plays.

15. Where was Thomas Merton born?
(a) Long Island, New York.
(b) Prades, France.
(c) Rome, Italy.
(d) Berlin, Germany.

Short Answer Questions

1. What author was an enduring influence on Merton?

2. With whom does Merton stay in England?

3. After graduating from college, what does Merton do?

4. When was Merton baptized?

5. Where did Merton visit his father after the end of the school term at Oakham?

(see the answer keys)

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