View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Mencken state about the literary influence(s) of Theodore Dreiser?
(a) No one author can be pointed to as an influence.
(b) Dreiser draws upon the literary tradition of Germany.
(c) Dreiser was the product of Emile Zola.
(d) Dreiser was the product of Frank Norris.

2. What does Mencken make synonymous with democracy in "A Blind Spot"?
(a) Puritanism.
(b) Hedonism.
(c) Agnosticism.
(d) Totalitarianism.

3. What human flaw does democracy depend upon, according to Mencken?
(a) Vanity.
(b) Envy.
(c) Rage.
(d) Greed.

4. Which was one of Mencken's criticisms for Woodrow Wilson?
(a) He had "never looked a common man in the eye."
(b) He was stuffy and puritanical.
(c) He had the gall to pardon Eugene Debs.
(d) He took the presidential office by voter fraud and corruption.

5. Why do "handsome men" deserve suspicion?
(a) They are always self-serving and vain.
(b) They are terrible conversationalists.
(c) The human body is inherently ugly.
(d) They are "ugly" inside.

6. Which is one of the stated reasons the editor put the volume together?
(a) To expose the corrupt policies of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
(b) To introduce the works of H. L. Mencken to a new generation.
(c) To sell books for profit.
(d) To fight charges that Mencken was racist.

7. Which is NOT one of the reasons winters were difficult in 1880s Baltimore?
(a) Water pipes could burst.
(b) The cold was severe, and furnaces did not help much.
(c) Cellars could flood.
(d) Snow caused many roofs to cave in.

8. Which decade, according to the author, was Mencken at his best?
(a) The 1930s.
(b) The 1910s.
(c) The 1920s.
(d) The 1940s.

9. What was Alistair Cooke's relationship to H. L. Mencken?
(a) A childhood acquaintance.
(b) A journalist and friend.
(c) A political enemy.
(d) A poet whom Mencken greatly admires.

10. What profession should the truth-teller NOT aspire to, according to Mencken?
(a) A jewelry maker.
(b) A bartender.
(c) Owner of a large company.
(d) The President of the United States.

11. What was "The Art Eternal" according to Mencken?
(a) Literature.
(b) Portrait painting.
(c) Lying.
(d) Prostitution.

12. According to "The Incomparable Buzz-Saw," what is a woman's only power?
(a) The power over her children.
(b) The power to torture a man through love.
(c) The power to ruin a man's life with divorce.
(d) The power of a house's pursestrings.

13. What aspect of man-woman relationships are the movies incorrect about, according to Mencken?
(a) Women always begin a romance; men are too cowardly.
(b) Handsome men are not sought after by women.
(c) There is no such thing as romantic love.
(d) Men don't like to date women younger than themselves.

14. What was the name of H. L. Mencken's brother?
(a) Bud.
(b) Jesse.
(c) Mitch.
(d) Charlie.

15. What did Gene the magistrate do with respect to an old man in his court accused of wife beating?
(a) Gene put him in jail for two years.
(b) Gene had the court bailiff beat the man, just as he had beat his wife.
(c) Gene threatened the man with made-up punishments to get him to reform.
(d) Gene applauded the man for keeping his wife well-behaved.

Short Answer Questions

1. What dominated Puritanism, according to Mencken in "The National Letters"?

2. What criticism did Mencken have for the effect of the Emancipation Proclamation?

3. What was Mencken's nickname for Chesapeake Bay?

4. What criticism did Dr. William Bayard Hale have for Woodrow Wilson?

5. In "Gore in the Caribees," how was Jose Miguel captured?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 681 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample