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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. The author states that what feeling is linked to our modern environmental mismatch?

2. What kind of benefits does the author describe self-delusion as harboring?

3. What emotion does the author NOT list as one that is likely to arise when one feels that meditation is not going well?

4. What ratio does the author say he usually experiences throughout a meditation retreat when he mentions that part is bliss and part is difficult?

5. The author states that when the Buddhist techniques work, a person receives not just happiness, but what other element?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain the concept of “beneffectance” (82) set forth by the psychologist Anthony Greenwald.

2. Discuss the tendency of humans to engage in self-inflation.

3. Discuss the author's discussion of a wandering mind.

4. Discuss the author's use of the anecdote regarding his tense jaw.

5. For what purpose does the author begin the entire narrative with a question?

6. How does the author use the example of bodily fluids in order to demonstrate the differences between Western Buddhism and Traditional Buddhism?

7. How does the author use the example of the scar experiment?

8. Discuss the author's decision to begin the book with an allusion to the film The Matrix.

9. What are the differences between concentration meditation and mindfulness meditation?

10. Discuss the author's purpose in using the example of Thich Quang Duc’s public self-immolation.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine Robert Wright's use of characterization methods to portray himself within the narrative. What effects do these characterization methods have on the book's inherent themes and messages?

Essay Topic 2

What ultimate message is Robert Wright's book Buddhism is True sending about the nature and value of compassion?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the author's treatment of truth, lies, and hypocrisy within the book Buddhism is True.

(see the answer keys)

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