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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. Who is Ivan Ilych's wife?

2. How much money does Ivan Ilych need to be paid?

3. What does Ivan Ilych feel toward what he hears down the hall?

4. With whom does Ivan Ilych play the game that he enjoys?

5. How old is Ivan Ilych's son?

Short Essay Questions

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

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

3. What does Ivan's self-revelation turn into?

4. What does Ivan discover about his method of coping in Chapter 6?

5. Describe how Ivan and others' initial response to his illness are classic examples of the denial stage of dying.

6. How does the doctor's professional air parallel Ivan's attitude at work?

7. How does the opium affect Ivan?

8. When does Ivan's suffering begin to subside?

9. Why is Ivan so upset that he didn't get the promotion?

10. Explain how reactions to Ivan's death by Gerasim and Ivan's son differ from the reactions of all the other characters in Chapter 1.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Ivan's family deal with his suffering and death? Do they learn anything from this experience? If so, what?

Essay Topic 2

How is 19th century Russia presented in "The Death of Ivan Ilych?" Be certain to support your claims by using text from the novel as well as independent sources that describe 19th century Russia.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the use of irony in "The Death of Ivan Ilych." How is irony used in novel? Does Tolstoy use one kind of irony more than another?

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