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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Dillard's thoughts, what words stopped Rebbe Shmelke from hearing his teacher?
(a) "So be it."
(b) "Amen."
(c) "God bless you."
(d) "The Lord spoke."

2. According to Dillard, what kind of life is a life of sensation?
(a) A good life.
(b) A life of spirit.
(c) A life of greed.
(d) A life spent reading.

3. Where does Dillard say she wound up putting her pen drawing in Chapter 2?
(a) Between the pages of her novel.
(b) Taped to the venetian blinds.
(c) On the wall of the library.
(d) On her kitchen fridge.

4. In the life of a Danish aristocrat mentioned in Chapter 2, what did he do for most of the day?
(a) Hunted.
(b) Napped.
(c) Ate.
(d) Swam.

5. What does Dillard say that the printed word cannot compete with?
(a) The movies.
(b) People.
(c) Travel.
(d) Music.

6. Who once said, "Which is the work in which he hasn't surrendered, under dire difficulty, the best thing he meant to have kept"?
(a) Annie Dillard.
(b) Henry James.
(c) William Faulkner.
(d) William Shakespeare.

7. What is needed in the world more than another excellent manuscript, as far as Dillard is concerned?
(a) Bees.
(b) Pollen.
(c) Shoes.
(d) Honey.

8. Who did Dillard see standing at the chess table in the Roanoke library one night?
(a) The head librarian.
(b) Her phantom opponent.
(c) A baby in a diaper.
(d) The librarian's wife.

9. What was seen outside the carrel window in Roanoke when Dillard peeked outside the blinds?
(a) The parking lot.
(b) Daylight.
(c) Fireworks.
(d) A May beetle.

10. Who does Dillard say that she believes to be one of the most prolific writers who has ever lived?
(a) James Patterson.
(b) Thomas Mann.
(c) Edgar Allen Poe.
(d) William Shakespeare.

11. What does Dillard say that she found so appealing about a Danish aristocrat?
(a) His ability to relax.
(b) His title.
(c) His daily schedule.
(d) His life of leisure.

12. Who is the Danish aristocrat mentioned in Chapter 2?
(a) Sverre Magnus.
(b) Osip Mandelstam.
(c) Wallace Stevens.
(d) Wilhelm Dinesen.

13. As explained by Dillard in Chapter 1, what must be done to a piece of writing after the first draft is finished?
(a) It must be mercilessly edited.
(b) You must strike it with a hammer.
(c) Nothing; it is done.
(d) Delete just a few sentences.

14. When a writer is stuck while writing a book, what does Dillard think he should do?
(a) Read books that are similar.
(b) Write, no matter what.
(c) Do crosswords to stimulate the brain.
(d) Nothing but think about it.

15. What did an inchworm search for in a panic in Chapter 1?
(a) Its front legs.
(b) A way in which to lift its hind legs to its front legs.
(c) The next part of a blade of grass it was climbing.
(d) A caterpillar.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Dillard's "line of words" do with random pictures in the writer's mind?

2. How long does it generally take to write a book?

3. Which author would walk through the hills for seven or eight hours on end without a hint of fatigue?

4. When Dillard is watching symbols move on her monitor, which sends back numbers to her, what is it her job to do?

5. How did Dillard get into the library in Roanoke late at night?

(see the answer keys)

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