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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. Where was John McVeagh born?
(a) England.
(b) Rhodesia.
(c) Persia.
(d) Portugal.

2. Which of the following historic examples does Lessing use to support her claims about human nature?
(a) The Crusades.
(b) The Reformation.
(c) The Holocaust.
(d) The Renaissance.

3. How did Lessing rebel while aboard the ship?
(a) By stealing things and lying about them.
(b) By speaking disrespectfully to the nanny.
(c) By sneaking out of the cabin.
(d) By staying up late.

4. What did Doris insist on having with her in the photograph for which she posed?
(a) Her cat.
(b) A flower that she picked herself.
(c) Her teddy bear.
(d) A book.

5. To which of the following religions did Lessing suddenly convert?
(a) Judaism.
(b) Anglicanism.
(c) Roman Catholicism.
(d) Christianity.

Short Answer Questions

1. How did the author feel about her childhood?

2. What did Biddy O'Halloran's skin resemble?

3. Which company offered loans to the farmers in Lessing's region?

4. With whom did Lessing board as a child?

5. How did Mrs. Mitchell and her son treat their Black servants?

Short Essay Questions

1. What advantage does Lessing that claim she has in writing her autobiography late in her life?

2. After tracing the history of her parents' lives, what does Lessing ponder?

3. Describe Lessing's father's medical condition in this chapter.

4. According to Lessing's memory, how did she learn to interact with people around her?

5. In Chapter 4, what prompted the Tayler family to move to Africa?

6. What did Lessing suspect was the root of her mother's illness?

7. How did Lessing's parents plan to acquire land in Southern Rhodesia?

8. How did Lessing's mother explain the bout of illness that kept her confined to bed?

9. How did Lessing avoid dealing with her conflicts with her mother?

10. How did Lessing become an atheist?

(see the answer keys)

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