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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What language is used after Mrs. Porter is described in Part III, The Fire Sermon?
(a) Russian
(b) Latin
(c) German
(d) French

2. What instrument does the narrator hear while walking along Lower Thames Street?
(a) Mandolin
(b) Harpsichord
(c) Lute
(d) Harmonica

3. What part of his own body does Tiresias call feminine?
(a) His jaw
(b) His hands
(c) His breasts
(d) His feet

4. What is Phlebas able to forget when he dies in Part IV, Death by Water?
(a) His profits and losses
(b) His lover
(c) The war
(d) His sins

5. Who is described as rudely forced in Part III, The Fire Sermon?
(a) Elizabeth
(b) Venus
(c) Mrs. Porter
(d) Philomel

Short Answer Questions

1. What shines on Mrs. Porter in Part III, The Fire Sermon?

2. Where does the narrator weep at beginning of Part III, The Fire Sermon?

3. What does Richmond promise the narrator in Part III, The Fire Sermon?

4. How long does the Thames run in Part III, The Fire Sermon?

5. What happens season will Sweeney be brought to Mrs. Porter?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is Tiresias described in The Fire Sermon?

2. In The Fire Sermon, what does the typist do when her lover leaves?

3. Why are Elizabeth and Leicester mentioned in The Fire Sermon, what?

4. What is the main message of this section of The Fire Sermon?

5. What is the significance of the title Death by Water?

6. How is Mrs. Porter described in The Fire Sermon?

7. What does the river mentioned at the beginning of The Fire Sermon symbolize?

8. In The Fire Sermon, what does Richmond, promise and how does the narrator respond to this?

9. In The Fire Sermon, what does the typist do when she comes home?

10. What is the main idea of the last section of Death by Water?

(see the answer keys)

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