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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Merton see as his future occupation in England?
(a) He wants to be a novelist or journalist.
(b) He wants to go into business.
(c) He wants to be a teacher.
(d) He wants to be a builder.

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

3. After graduating from college, what does Merton do?
(a) He begins a teaching career.
(b) He applies to graduate school.
(c) He looks for work that will bring him fortune and fame.
(d) He gets a job as a journalist.

4. What author was an enduring influence on Merton?
(a) William Blake.
(b) John Donne.
(c) William Faulkner.
(d) G.M. Hopkins.

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

6. What university does Merton attend in New York?
(a) Columbia University.
(b) Cornell University.
(c) Harvard University.
(d) Hunter University.

7. What philosophy does Merton explore while at the university?
(a) Catholicism.
(b) Materialism.
(c) Communism.
(d) Stoicism.

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

9. Where did Merton's father receive medical treatment for his cancer?
(a) At a hospital in Paris.
(b) At Middlesex Hospital in London.
(c) At Durston Hospital in Scotland.
(d) At home with a personal physician.

10. What, in Part 1, Chapter 4, is noticeably lacking the Merton's autobiography?
(a) A description of his travels.
(b) The names of his girlfriends.
(c) His feelings about religion.
(d) The names of his family members.

11. What does Merton admire about Mark Van Doren?
(a) His teaching.
(b) His contemplative ability.
(c) His many girlfriends.
(d) His sports ability.

12. What political activities does Merton participate in at the university?
(a) Writing for political publications.
(b) He is not involved with politics at the university.
(c) Student demonstrations and meetings.
(d) Church-sponsored lectures.

13. Why does Owen Merton travel so frequently?
(a) He paints landscapes all over the world.
(b) He is a traveling salesman.
(c) He is looking for a job.
(d) He visits relatives.

14. Where had Merton been shortly before his father died?
(a) St. Antonin.
(b) Scotland.
(c) Strasbourg.
(d) France.

15. What is the "sign of the Water Bearer"?
(a) The symbol for the month of January.
(b) An advertisement for a hotel.
(c) The name of his father's art gallery.
(d) Merton's astrological birth sign of Aquarius.

Short Answer Questions

1. What kind of music did Merton especially like when he felt like a rebel in New York?

2. Why does Merton say he was "truly happy" in England?

3. Who is Bob Lax?

4. How does Merton describe his parents?

5. What medical problem plagued Merton on a backpacking trip in the Rhine Valley?

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