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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. How many adults lived in the Persian house while Lessing was growing up?

2. How many biographers were writing about Lessing at the time that she wrote the book?

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

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

5. How old was Lessing when she wrote "The Treasure Trunk"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Lessing become an atheist?

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

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

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

5. From the details Lessing provides in Chapter 1, describe the circumstances which led to Maude's broken heart.

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

7. While their mother was bedridden, what did Lessing and her brother do?

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

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

10. Describe the conflict between Lessing's parents regarding the servants.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine Lessing's position on social class and class structures. How did Lessing perceive class? What was her social class at birth? And, how did her family's social status affect her understanding of the term, class? What moments from the autobiography appear to have contributed to her notions of what class and class structure were? Considering events from her childhood and young adult years, what inspired Lessing to join the Communist Party of Southern Rhodesia?

Essay Topic 2

Gender emerges in the autobiography as a determining factor in Lessing's life that influences her behavior and reception as a young woman within her community. Discuss the way in which Lessing portrayed the effect of gender roles on her growing identity. How did Lessing's mother model femininity? How did Lessing act out against or comply with that model of female behavior? How did she seem to define herself as a woman?

Essay Topic 3

As a child, Lessing grew up in Persia and Southern Rhodesia - regions that were both part of the British Commonwealth. Examine the way in which Lessing discussed life as an English citizen living in the Commonwealth. What were the conditions of their lives as English citizens? How did the lives of the English differ from the lives of the indigenous peoples? How did Lessing treat those conditions and differences?

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