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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 are the physical ailments of the people in Fillmore's apartment?

2. Describe the ridiculous method Fillmore has of getting women into his bedroom.

3. What does Henry think will happen to the world if someone really writes his true thoughts and experiences?

4. Why is Fillmore so taken with Macha?

5. What does Fillmore do when he arrives home from work in the evenings?

Short Essay Questions

1. How do both Fillmore and Henry appear to be gullible?

2. How does Henry see flow of the word about him?

3. When the blonde woman stays away too long and leaves Henry alone in her room, what does he do?

4. What makes Henry think about the high born women of Paris?

5. Describe the nature of the job Henry accepts in Dijon.

6. What is it about Van Norden that puzzles Henry?

7. How does Henry start out to spend his last night in Paris before going to Dijon?

8. Why is it that Henry does not want to go to Russia with Tania?

9. Describe the scene when Yvette comes in drunk and half naked to Jimmie's bar.

10. Describe Henry's feelings when he has placed himself on a budget.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write a paper about how the French surrealists influenced Miller's work. Use two or three of the surreal dreams or day dreams in the book to illustrate your point. How do some of those passages sound like an early encounter with the Twilight Zone.

Essay Topic 2

Write a paper on whether you think Henry Miller accomplished what he set out to do with this novel. Refer back to passages in the book where he talks about what literature should be. Is he justified in writing honestly about the way men and women actually view their sexuality?

Essay Topic 3

Henry discovers Papini and is impressed with his writing. Do some research on Papini and explain what it is about him that Miller so admired. Be sure to mention the slight difference in what Papini said about the artist needing to be alone and what Henry says about the same subject.

(see the answer keys)

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