View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which one of the following best describes Tolkien's recount of the history surrounding his poem in "Publisher Drama"?
(a) Expected.
(b) Lengthy.
(c) Incomplete.
(d) Brief.

2. How does Tolkien consider the term "Elves"?
(a) He thinks it is misleading.
(b) He thinks it is senseless.
(c) He thinks it is undefined.
(d) He thinks it is amusing.

3. Who does Tolkien say are the only people interested in reading his literary works in Letter #115?
(a) C.S. Lewis and his wife.
(b) Only C.S. Lewis.
(c) C.S. Lewis and his son.
(d) Only his wife and son.

4. How does Tolkien describe the alteration he is contemplating making to his manuscript in Letter #128?
(a) Unnecessary.
(b) Specific.
(c) General.
(d) Decorative.

5. Where is the man whose accent Tolkien refers to as "English after being wiped over with a dirty sponge" from?
(a) New Hampshire.
(b) New England.
(c) Pennsylvania.
(d) Connecticut.

6. Who is the person that Tolkien thanks, and is the recipient of Letter #130?
(a) Humphrey Carpenter.
(b) Rayner Unwin.
(c) Milton Waldman.
(d) George Allen.

7. How many Rings of Power does the One Ring control?
(a) Nine.
(b) Ten.
(c) Seven.
(d) Eight.

8. How long is the summary that Tolkien's new publisher asks him to write at the end of "Publisher Drama"?
(a) One-hundred-and-fifty words.
(b) Fifty words.
(c) One-hundred words.
(d) Two-hundred words.

9. In Letter #130, what distinction does Tolkien make about the artificial languages he creates for his books?
(a) They are a combination of two real-life languages.
(b) They are seldom used in real life.
(c) They are never used in real life.
(d) They are the opposite of an actual real life language.

10. During the time these letters are written, what term do the British typically use to label Americans?
(a) City folk.
(b) Westerners.
(c) Yanks.
(d) Colonists.

11. As mentioned in Letter #66, why does Tolkien think that he will have to move some of the sections of his book?
(a) They do not fit in with the storyline.
(b) They are too short.
(c) They do not have the same writing style as the other sections.
(d) They are too long.

12. How much of The Silmarillion takes place before the arrival of human beings?
(a) All of it.
(b) The majority of it.
(c) Very little of it.
(d) None of it.

13. What does Tolkien suggest is the greatest resource for the information the schoolboy is seeking in Letter #114?
(a) The Silmarillion.
(b) The Hobbit.
(c) The Lord of the Rings.
(d) Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics.

14. What two factors contribute to the main part of Letter #66 to Christopher?
(a) Fiction and the writing of an imaginary world.
(b) Fiction and the idea of living in an imaginary world.
(c) Real life and the writing of an imaginary world.
(d) Real life and the idea of living in an imaginary world.

15. What point does Tolkien make about his book, The Silmarillion, in Letter #131?
(a) The themes of the book are intentionally complex.
(b) The themes of the book are intentionally simple.
(c) It is about humans.
(d) It is not about humans.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Tolkien describe the change that he has made to his manuscript in Letter #129?

2. As Tolkien explains in Letter #131, what motivates The Enemy in his stories?

3. How many improvements does Tolkien indicate he has made to the manuscript for Farmer Giles of Ham?

4. In Letter #27, which of the following does Tolkien say that he will leave the drawing of to someone who can draw ?

5. Who provides input , feedback, and advice for the letters in the book?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 570 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample