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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. Art and literature of the party prove to the intellectual that what is true about the world?

2. By standards of the East, as compared to the West, how is anyone with talent treated?

3. Why, as Chapter 2 explains, do Eastern communists look to the West?

4. Multi-Bing pills establish ________ foundations rather than _________ .

5. In Chapter 4, once the Nazis took over a country, how did they treat the printing presses?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does the Eastern communist often call the West stupid?

2. How does Alpha's hunger for purity and strong heroic characters prepare the way for the New Faith? Could he have gone any other way?

3. The East uses talented artists to their full ability, yet sometimes with mediocre results. Why does this happen?

4. Why does aesthetic Ketman flourish, when nothing of the sort is necessary in other countries?

5. What advantages does the Center gain with the idea of "cosmopolitanism"?

6. .How did Alpha become a more religious writer when he turned away from Christianity?

7. Is Ketman necessary to the citizen of the New Faith? Why?

8. From several references to Tito throughout Chapters 2 and 3, what can the reader infer about him? What does the center gain by making an example of him?

9. When the Nazis invaded Warsaw, every man quickly changed his view of the world. Rather than reporting a corpse lying in the gutter, he passes quietly on. What does this say about man's state of mind then?

10. Why is it important that man not only be free from something but also for something?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

This question has been growing throughout the book: Why does Milosz write? As you answer, consider the writer's responsibility in the world, and the responsibility of a man who has witnessed great evil. Intellectually and ethically, did Milosz make the right choice to write what he saw?

Essay Topic 2

Beta's stories portray man as an animal, barely held in check by the restraints of civilization. How is this demonstrated in Poland during World War II? Given the progression of Poland through capitalism, Nazism, and communism, was man's good or animal side stronger? Which one triumphed? Also, use examples from the book of people acting out of goodness.

Essay Topic 3

Prompted by Lieutenant Zbyszek's sign in the wilderness of bombed Warsaw, Alpha and Milosz reflect on the man who wrote it. What is Milosz's response, emotionally and mentally, to the sign? Using other examples from the book (e.g., the Jewish girl shot in the street or Delta's life), explain what Milosz presents about the permanence of an individual life.

(see the answer keys)

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