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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. What does Ivan Ilych admit to himself for the first time after seeing himself in the mirror?

2. Ivan Ilych knows he gave his life to what?

3. How old is Ivan Ilych's son?

4. Why does Ivan Ilych take his family there?

5. Who is the first to leave the event that happened on Friday?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe Ivan's realization in Chapter 9.

2. How does Ivan make his pain worse?

3. Why does Ivan experience only temporary relief when his family leaves in Chapter 8?

4. How is Ivan characterized in Chapter 3?

5. Name four components of the plot in Chapter 1.

6. At the moment Ivan admits to himself that he is dying, how does he feel toward his family?

7. How is Ivan's experience of death in Chapter 2 similar to Peter Ivanovich's experience of death in Chapter 1?

8. Why do Ivan's memories of the past make him feel the way they do?

9. Initially, how did Ivan react to this self-revelation in Chapter 5?

10. How does the author see Ivan's life and why?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What point-of-view does Tolstoy use in writing "The Death of Ivan Ilych?" Why does this point-of-view better serve Tolstoy's purpose(s) for writing the novel? How does this point-of-view get Tolstoy's themes across? What tone comes from Tolstoy using this point-of-view?

Essay Topic 2

Choose one of the major themes ("We die as we live" or "What constitutes a good life?") and explain what is meant by that theme. How does Tolstoy convey this theme throughout the novel?

Essay Topic 3

Choose several passages of good description from "The Death of Ivan Ilych" and explain how the descriptions help the reader to experience the events in the novel.

(see the answer keys)

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