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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What article of clothing caught young Lessing's attention on Bayswater Road?
(a) A lavish rose gown.
(b) A pair of ladies' riding pants.
(c) A fur coat.
(d) A grey silk shift dress.

2. When did Lessing experiment with drugs?
(a) 1960's.
(b) 1970's.
(c) 1950's.
(d) 1940's.

3. How did Mrs. Mitchell and her son treat their Black servants?
(a) Mrs. Mitchell and her son completely ignored their Black servants.
(b) Mrs. Mitchell and her son treated their Black servants just like family.
(c) Mrs. Mitchell and her son treated their black servants like slaves.
(d) Mrs. Mitchell and her son screamed at and berated their Black servants.

4. In Chapter 8, what does Lessing reference as a common theme throughout her childhood?
(a) Fires.
(b) Trees.
(c) Dreams.
(d) Adventures.

5. What was the name of Lessing's nanny?
(a) Betty.
(b) Biddy.
(c) Betsy.
(d) Beth.

6. In Chapter 3, which of the following does Lessing describe as her first memory?
(a) Her father, towering above her on a horse.
(b) Her father returning from war.
(c) An image of the great house in Persia.
(d) An image of the farm in Southern Rhodesia.

7. According to Lessing, where do most of the good biographers live?
(a) United States of America.
(b) Britain.
(c) Germany.
(d) France.

8. Which of the following did Lessing delight in telling the other children at the school?
(a) That being naughty was more fun than behaving.
(b) That being naughty was much worse than lying.
(c) That a lie was worse than being naughty.
(d) That lying would make their face stick in a horrible position.

9. During the 1930's what did Lessing and her brother hear all of the adults discussing?
(a) The Slump.
(b) The War.
(c) The Native Problem.
(d) The Empire.

10. How much capital did Lessing's father take to Southern Rhodesia?
(a) £ 10,000.
(b) £ 2,500.
(c) £ 1,000.
(d) £ 100.

11. Who stated that children should play in mud?
(a) Montessori.
(b) Lessing's mother.
(c) Mrs. Scott.
(d) Lessing's father.

12. Which of the following does Lessing blame for the distrust that 20th Century people have in their governments?
(a) World War I.
(b) World War II.
(c) Political corruption.
(d) Media coverage.

13. How many bouts of illness did Lessing's family experience?
(a) Two.
(b) One.
(c) Three.
(d) Four.

14. Which of the following historic examples does Lessing use to support her claims about human nature?
(a) The Renaissance.
(b) The Holocaust.
(c) The Crusades.
(d) The Reformation.

15. How did the author feel about her childhood?
(a) Lessing felt as though the entire world was changing while she was a child.
(b) Lessing felt as though there had been a grey cloud over her childhood.
(c) Lessing felt as though her childhood had been very sheltered.
(d) Lessing felt as though her parents had neglected her.

Short Answer Questions

1. What type of animals frequently made their way into the Tayler house?

2. To which of the following does Lessing compare writers?

3. Which of the following song for children made Lessing's mother cry?

4. Which of the following does Lessing state as signifying the end of any war?

5. Where was John McVeagh born?

(see the answer keys)

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