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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. According to Lessing, where do most of the good biographers live?

2. What did the doctor prescribe to alleviate Lessing's mother's ailment?

3. After returning to England, where did Lessing's family settle?

4. To which of the following does Lessing compare writers?

5. When did Lessing experiment with drugs?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Lessing become an atheist?

2. In your opinion, why does Lessing trace her lineage in the opening chapter?

3. What sensation predominated Lessing's childhood?

4. Describe Lessing's outlook on the future of the world and human society.

5. According to Lessing in Chapter 2, what is the role of truth in autobiographical writing?

6. Quoting a recent historian, to what major event does Lessing attribute current feelings of mistrust toward the government?

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

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

9. In Chapter 3, what type of child abuse does Lessing describe?

10. Describe the English views of themselves and their relation to other people as Lessing portrays it in this chapter.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze the way in which Lessing discussed children and childhood in her autobiography. Children appeared throughout the work, as Lessing explored her own childhood, as well as the children who she had with her various partners. How did she present childhood in the text? How did Lessing feel that children should be treated? How did she treat them in her portrayal of them? How did having children affect Lessing's life?

Essay Topic 2

History plays a key role in forming the text of the autobiography. Examine the ways in which Lessing relied on, recounted, or challenged history in the text. How central was history in Lessing's understanding of her own life? How essential was Lessing's life in her understanding of history? Were those two elements inextricably linked? What did Lessing's autobiography contribute to your understanding of history, understanding of historical events, or the way in which history is recorded?

Essay Topic 3

During her young adult years, Lessing becomes affiliated with the Communist Party of Southern Rhodesia - at the time, considered a very political party for a young British woman to join. Discuss Lessing's initial feelings regarding the Communist Party, as well as the changes that occurred to that opinion during the rise and fall of the Soviet Union. What was Lessing's political stance at the time of her autobiography? How does she comment on the ideals and implementation of Socialism or Communism? How would instituting a Communist government in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) have been different than instituting a Communist government in Europe?

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