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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In what town does Isaacson claim that George Kennan was born?
(a) London.
(b) Chicago.
(c) Milwaukee.
(d) New York.

2. What quality made Lovett and McCloy influential insiders, according to Isaacson?
(a) The informal social networks they had formed.
(b) Their overseas experiences with world leaders.
(c) Their intimate friendships with President Franklin Roosevelt.
(d) Their efficient methods of researching and writing reports.

3. What position did the "Wise Man" who implemented the Lend Lease program eventually take in the Roosevelt administration?
(a) Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs.
(b) Under Secretary of State.
(c) Secretary of Commerce.
(d) Assistant Secretary of War.

4. What does Isaacson claim to be the most elite club at Yale?
(a) Scroll and Key.
(b) Skull and Bones.
(c) Ivy.
(d) DKE.

5. Which of the "Wise Men" does Isaacson report to be the son of a wealthy railway tycoon?
(a) Averell Harriman.
(b) Chip Bohlen.
(c) Dean Acheson.
(d) Robert Lovett.

6. Who coined the term "Iron Curtain" in a cable to President Truman?
(a) Winston Churchill.
(b) George Kennan.
(c) Henry Stimson.
(d) John McCloy.

7. What exclusive club did Chip Bohlen join at Harvard according to Isaacson?
(a) The Porcellian.
(b) The Harvard Lampoon.
(c) Skull and Bones.
(d) Sphinx-Kalumet Club.

8. What does Isaacson suggest was a practical challenge that Truman faced when he began his presidency?
(a) Truman, as vice president, had not been part of any post-war planning meetings nor had he been given any military secrets, such as the existence of the atomic bomb.
(b) Some people were not aware that he was the Vice President.
(c) He was not well versed in foreign policy.
(d) Truman was replacing Roosevelt who had become identifiable with the presidency.

9. With what country did Bohlen become fascinated during late-night discussions at Harvard?
(a) China.
(b) Russia.
(c) Germany.
(d) Japan.

10. Who does Isaacson report chose Kennan and Bohlen for service in the American Embassy in Moscow?
(a) The American Ambassador to Russia, William Bullitt.
(b) Secretary of War Henry Lewis Stimson.
(c) President Franklin Roosevelt.
(d) Secretary of State Elihu Root.

11. Who wrote the top-secret "recommendations for the use of nuclear weapons"?
(a) Harry Truman.
(b) Colonel Paul Tibbets.
(c) Douglas MacArthur.
(d) J. Robert Oppenheimer.

12. Which president does Isaacson report Dean Acheson served as Assistant Secretary of State?
(a) Franklin Roosevelt.
(b) Harry Truman.
(c) John F. Kennedy.
(d) Dwight Eisenhower.

13. What does Isaacson report to be the differences between the negotiating styles of Roosevelt and Truman?
(a) Roosevelt was high strung, but Truman was contemplative.
(b) Roosevelt could be manipulative and conniving with people and public opinion, but Truman was forthright to the point of bluntness.
(c) Roosevelt was indifferent, but Truman was sensitive.
(d) Roosevelt eschewed advice, but Truman ruled by consensus.

14. What event early in WWII does Isaacson quote John McCloy as calling, "...regrettable in the clear light of perfect hindsight"?
(a) Roosevelt's decision to prioritize the war in Europe rather than the Pacific.
(b) Becoming an ally with the Soviet Union.
(c) The relocation of citizens of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast.
(d) Naming Douglas MacArthur as Supreme Allied Commander in the Pacific.

15. With what investment house did Isaacson claim Averell Harriman merged W.A. Harriman & Co.?
(a) Brown Brothers & Company.
(b) Lehman Brothers.
(c) Goldman Sachs.
(d) Knight Wooley & Company.

Short Answer Questions

1. Under what circumstances did Robert Lovett claim to Isaacson that he met the Harriman Family?

2. How does Isaacson claim Joseph Stalin's temperament changed between Harriman's first and second meetings?

3. What does Isaacson claim to be the purpose of the club that Bohlen joined?

4. What does Isaacson claim the six men profiled in The Wise Men represent?

5. Isaacson reports which "Wise Man" worked to implement Franklin Roosevelt's Lend Lease program?

(see the answer keys)

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