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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. Who is most fond of motivational cliches?
(a) Chinaski's father.
(b) Chinaski's mother.
(c) Chinaski.
(d) Chinaski's mentor.

2. What is the name of the thief who lives in a boarding house in "Bad Times at the 3rd and Vermont Hotel"?
(a) Tenness.
(b) Dakota.
(c) Hondur.
(d) Alabam.

3. Where is Chinaski's favorite place in "My Vanishing Act"?
(a) A meadow.
(b) A graveyard.
(c) A football field.
(d) A baseball field.

4. Which poem is a short quip in which Bukowski says it is still nice to be Bukowski?
(a) "The Chemistry of Things."
(b) "The Still Trapeze."
(c) "Rift."
(d) "Well, That's Just the Way It Is."

5. In "A Funny Guy," what is Schopenhauer's profession?
(a) Professor.
(b) Philanthropist.
(c) Philosopher.
(d) Psychologist.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where is the man located in "The Man in the Brown Suit"?

2. In "Friends within the Darkness," Chinaski listens to __________.

3. Saroyan flees from the United States to _________.

4. Chinaski assures the readers that even though he writes less about drinking and prostitutes, what is still intact?

5. Which of the following adjectives best describes Chinaski of the present in "Zero"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is Chinaski's view of solitude?

2. Describe the events of the poem "Stride."

3. Why does Chinaski view criticism in a dismissive manner?

4. What recurring motif is made most apparent in "Rift"?

5. What is significant about the poems following "The Master Plan" in terms of imagery?

6. Describe the message Bukowski presents in "Darkness."

7. Which poem expresses a counterpoint of an indulgent and listless life?

8. How does Chinaski feel about Joe O'Brien, and how does he react to his death?

9. Describe Chinaski's view of humanity.

10. What happens in "The Passing of a Great One" and "The Wine of Forever"?

(see the answer keys)

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