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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. Which of the subordinate bank employees in “The Arrest” is described as “blond with deep-set eyes”?

2. On what day of the week does K. return to the courtroom in “In the Empty Conference Hall – The Student – The Offices”?

3. Where does K. see Kaminer on his way to the courtroom in “The First Hearing”?

4. When did World War I begin?

5. What word refers to a fictional society that is in some important way undesirable or frightening?

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the character of Frau Grubach introduced in “A Conversation with Frau Grubach”?

2. Who is Fraülein Bürstner? How is her character described in “A Conversation with Frau Grubach”?

3. What response does K. receive when he asks the three men in the lumber-room, “What are you doing here” in “The Thrasher”?

4. What relationship to the legal system does Fraülein Bürstner say she has in “A Conversation with Frau Grubach”?

5. What information has K. learned about his coming hearing in the opening of “The First Hearing”? How did he gain this information?

6. What does Willem say of his and Franz’s careers prior to K.’s accusations in “The Thrasher”?

7. Where does the Usher lead K. in “In the Empty Conference Hall – The Student – The Offices”? How is this setting described?

8. What excuse does Willem give K. for his previous behavior in “The Thrasher”?

9. What is K.’s reaction to the invitation given him by the Deputy Manager in “The First Hearing”?

10. Who does K. find at the courtroom on the week after his first hearing in “In the Empty Conference Hall – The Student – The Offices”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe and discuss K.’s position at the bank and his ambitions within his role there. Approximately how long has K. worked at the bank? How swiftly was his promotion to Financial Officer? What obstacles does K. face in his work?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the character of Josef K. as the protagonist of The Trial. What was K.’s life like prior to the arrival of the guards that appear in “The Arrest”? What is K.’s position within his society? What do you find to be K.’s “fatal flaw” in the story?

Essay Topic 3

Analyze the characters of Bertold and the Usher’s Wife in the novel. What is Bertold a student of? How do the Usher and the Usher’s Wife describe his character? What power does Bertold hold within the courts?

(see the answer keys)

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