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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through 29-33.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What organization did Mencken's father force him to join at age fourteen?
(a) The Baptist Church.
(b) The Boy Scouts of America.
(c) The Junior Achievement League.
(d) Y.M.C.A.

2. What cheeky nickname did Mencken give Theodore Dreiser?
(a) The Frankenstein of the short story.
(b) The Hindenburg of the novel.
(c) The Clown Prince of prose.
(d) The Jack Ripper of the novel.

3. What was NOT a feature of chiropractors, according to "Chiropractic"?
(a) They did no good, and may in fact cause harm.
(b) They had a good deal of anatomical knowledge.
(c) They were retired baseball players or piano movers.
(d) They were quacks.

4. In "Pater Patriae," which was NOT one of the reasons Mencken admired George Washington?
(a) He was not convinced of the wisdom of common people.
(b) He could cuss up a storm.
(c) He was tough-living, and whiskey-drinking.
(d) He put his trust and authority in intellectuals and lawyers.

5. Why was Theodore Dreiser compared to Franz Schubert by Mencken?
(a) Dreiser and Schubert exhibited an uncommon and sometimes perverse imagination.
(b) Dreiser and Schubert both created work that is "lighter than air."
(c) Dreiser and Schubert didn't know the theory of their arts, but nonetheless they produce valuable work.
(d) Dreiser and Schubert used whimsy, irony, and a sense of silliness.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Mencken call a man who resists the charms of women?

2. Who was the president of Cuba when Mencken visited the country in "Gore in the Caribees"?

3. How would Mencken respond to the notion that William Jennings Bryan was an earnest man?

4. What was Alistair Cooke's relationship to H. L. Mencken?

5. Why did Valentino invite Mencken to dinner?

(see the answer key)

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