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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

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

2. In "Recollections of Notable Cops," why does Mencken find the idea of a police academy remarkable?

3. How was Theodore Dreiser like Joseph Conrad, according to Mencken?

4. Which boat captain helped Mencken while in Cuba?

5. Which decade, according to the author, was Mencken at his best?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the nature of Mencken's first memory, as described in "Introduction to the Universe"?

2. What was Mencken's opinion about Henry Cabot Lodge?

3. What criticisms did Mencken level at General John Pershing?

4. Why are "handsome men" suspicious, according to "The Lure of Beauty"?

5. According to Mencken, Theodore Dreiser had what emotional effect on the reader?

6. Why did Mencken criticize Woodrow Wilson?

7. What was the nature of Mencken's first-ever printed article?

8. What was accomplished by Walt Whitman's "Democratic Vistas," according to Mencken?

9. Why did Mencken believe it was advantageous for him to have not attended college?

10. How did Mencken answer the question of whether successful men should have mistresses?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Mencken discussed perfection in "The Good Man," and states that every good quality in a man is balanced by a flaw.

A) Does Mencken feel that perfection is possible? How can "The Good Man" be reconciled with something like "A Glance Ahead," in which Mencken imagines an ideal government?

B) Is there a danger in attempting perfection?

C) What might Mencken say about perfection and its relation to organized religion?

Essay Topic 2

The nature of art, and especially of writing, is a subject that concerned Mencken.

A) What argument does Mencken make in "The Artist"? How is this argument related to Mencken's anti-war stance?

B) What argument does Mencken make in "The Author at Work"? How are we to reconcile his argument with the fact that, naturally, Mencken is himself a writer?

Essay Topic 3

Like any accomplished columnist, Mencken knew how to tell a good story, as in "The Noble Experiment" and "The Hills of Zion."

A) What agenda, if any, did Mencken have in sharing the stories of "The Noble Experiment"? Use examples from the text.

B) What agenda, if any, did Mencken have in sharing the story of "The Hills of Zion"? Use examples from the text.

(see the answer keys)

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