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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. Why did Kurt and Esther refuse to attend meetings?

2. Who vouched for Gottfried Lessing to get him out of jail?

3. In Chapter 16, which part of Esther and Kurt's house was exclusively Esther's?

4. How old was Jean in the scene that Lessing describes in this chapter?

5. Which activity did Lessing both love and hate?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Lessing support herself when she no longer lived with her parents?

2. Describe Lessing's entrance into love and romance as she describes it in Chapter 10.

3. How did Lessing describe Kurt in Chapter 16?

4. Describe Lessing's ultimate assessment of the impact of the Communist Party in Southern Rhodesian politics.

5. What became of the three husbands who enlisted to fight Hitler?

6. How did John react to the birth of his little sister?

7. When John was 9 months old, what did Lessing and Frank decide to do?

8. Describe the letter Lessing received from her mother in Chapter 9.

9. In Chapter 12, how does Lessing describe her first son, John?

10. Describe the feeling that Lessing had before she left Frank.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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?

Essay Topic 2

In this section of the autobiography, Lessing detailed her progression to sexual awakening and maturity. Analyze Lessing's developing notions on sexuality in that section of her life story. How did she view sexuality? How did her views differ from the majority of those in her community? How did Lessing derive those notions of sexuality? Provide details from the text.

Essay Topic 3

At the same time that Lessing wrote her autobiography, she critically engaged with the strengths and limitations of the form by recounting a valuable form of truth. Explore Lessing's commentary on the autobiography as a genre. What did she believe to be the value in writing her autobiography? What did Lessing perceive to be its limitation? How did exploring Lessing's perspective on the genre that she was using, illuminate the value of the text that resulted from that questioning? What did she ultimately offer her readers with regard to objectivity, subjectivity, or truth? How much more did you know about Lessing herself at the end of her work?

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