View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Of what does the narrator feel jealous?

2. What does the narrator realize about Charlotte?

3. What does the young French boy want to do with his watch?

4. About what does the narrator feel guilty?

5. Why does the narrator lie to Pashka?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Charlotte tell the narrator about death?

2. How does the narrator feel about the women in the photo and how does he try to return to the comfort of his childhood?

3. Why does the narrator not call or write Charlotte after he finds her and what does he do while waiting to see her?

4. Who is the only person in the narrator's class who treats him kindly?

5. What does the narrator relate about a man named Beria?

6. What does the narrator do about three years after staying in the tombs and why was it difficult to do? How did he overcome the difficulty?

7. What does the narrator begin to learn in Chapter 12 in class to protect the fatherland and how does he feel about the process of learning this?

8. What does the narrator do about a place for Charlotte when she comes to visit?

9. How does Pashka feel about the narrator's new popularity and what does Pashka do about it?

10. How does the narrator's interest in Russia cause him problems?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many readers of fiction place themselves in the position of one character, wondering if they would do the same thing as that character. Discuss the following:

1. Do you think one of the values of literature is to serve as a reflection of oneself? Why or why not?

2. Socrates said "Know thyself." How can reading a book such as "Dreams of My Russian Summers" help a reader to know him/herself? Do you find yourself reflecting on your own character and abilities when reading "Dreams of My Russian Summers"? Why or why not.

3. Choose one specific incident in "Dreams of My Russian Summers" to discuss and compare one of the characters' response to how you think you would respond.

Essay Topic 2

"Dreams of My Russian Summers" belongs to the fictional memoir genre. Discuss the following:

1. Define the literary term "genre" and give several examples of three other genres in addition to the fictional memoir genre.

2. Discuss two reasons why it might be useful to label a text by genre and two reasons it might be disadvantageous to label a text by genre.

3. What do you think is the difference between a fictional memoir and a historical novel?

Essay Topic 3

Upon returning to Russia, the narrator dives into books about France and French history, spending entire days lost in the dust-covered volumes of the public library. His interest in French history has taken his attention away from other childhood things like sports and movies, which has made him a target for bullies in his school. The only person who treats the narrator kindly is a young man in school everyone considers to be a dunce. The narrator's position as an outsider in his school is important to note because the entire novel surrounds the narrator's struggle to discover where he fits in in the world - is he Russian or is he French?

1. Why do you think the narrator became so deeply immerged in studying France and French history? Use examples from "Dreams of My Russian Summers" to support your answer.

2. Do you think that a student who is very different from his or her classmates is always bullied or ostracized? Why or why not? Use examples from "Dreams of My Russian Summers" to support your answer.

3. Why do you think it was so important to the narrator to figure out if he fit into society in Russia or in France? Use examples from "Dreams of My Russian Summers" to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,312 words (approx. 5 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample