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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. What happens to Chinaski in "Everybody Talks Too Much"?
(a) He files for divorce.
(b) He is pulled over by a cop.
(c) He gets into a fight.
(d) He meets a woman at the bar.

2. In which poem does Bukowski ruminate on his inconsistent fame?
(a) "Only For a Minute."
(b) "Relentless as a Tarantula."
(c) "Huh?"
(d) "Their Night."

3. Where does "My Buddy" take place?
(a) New York.
(b) Los Angeles.
(c) New Orleans.
(d) Dallas.

4. What happens to all good poetry at the end of "Me and My Buddy"?
(a) It is lost for a short while.
(b) It becomes more abundant.
(c) It does not change.
(d) It disappears.

5. Which of the following describes the woman in "The Lady in the Castle"?
(a) She has big feet.
(b) She has big eyes.
(c) She has a large nose.
(d) She has long hair.

Short Answer Questions

1. What happens to Chinaski as he gets thinner in "You Get So Alone At Times . . ."?

2. Whom does Chinaski meet in "A Tragic Meeting"?

3. What is "An Ordinary Poem" about?

4. In "The Boil," for whom does Chinaski work?

5. Chinaski claims to say nothing to cops and what other type of person?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the message of "Trying to Make It"?

2. Is Bukowski seixst? Why or why not?

3. How and why does Chinaski focus on domestic life in some of the poems?

4. What allegory is present in "The Death of a Splendid Neighborhood"?

5. How does Bukowski use gallows humor and vaudeville in his poems?

6. Describe the poem "The Lady in the Castle."

7. Describe Chinaski's feelings for the woman in "The Beautiful Lady Editor."

8. What does the lion in "Invasion" represent?

9. Why does Chinaski think he has so many female critics?

10. Describe the poem "Invasion."

(see the answer keys)

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