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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 trait does Brooks say Randolph exuded, in the same way that Marshall had?

2. How did Eliot meet the man who would become her life-long partner?

3. In Chapter 5, what is a trait Brooks argues is common among modest people who achieve great success?

4. How did writer Henry James describe Eliot's physical appearance?

5. In Chapter 6, who does Brooks say was the most prominent Civil Rights leader in America at the time the program Command Performance aired?

Short Essay Questions

1. What request did Marshall make for his funeral arrangements?

2. How did George Marshall humiliate his father when he was a young boy?

3. What sect's teachings did Augustine initially follow and then renounce?

4. What was Bayard Rustin's most significant personal flaw?

5. What kind of attitude did Marshall have towards institutions, according to Brooks?

6. What kind of relationship did Mary Anne Evans (whose pen name was George Eliot) have with her mother?

7. In what ways were Eliot and George Lewes well-matched as a couple?

8. As a young woman, what causes a large rift between Eliot and her father?

9. What significant event during the Civil Rights era did Rustin help to organize and execute?

10. How was Marshall affected by his wife's sudden death?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did the writer George Eliot's (born Mary Anne Evans) life and writings change dramatically after her relationship with George Henry Lewes developed? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 2

What core traits did George Marshall's wish for a simple burial, with no state funeral or fanfare, reveal about his character? Write an essay explaining your answer.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay explaining why Brooks thinks moderation is a "generally misunderstood virtue" (69). Do you agree or disagree with Brooks' opinion on this matter?

(see the answer keys)

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