The Death of Ivan Ilych Study Guide

1. Tolstoy is primarily a

• 19th century German writer
• 19th century Polish writer
• 19th century Russian writer
• 20th century American writer

2. Tolstoy is best known for his

• screenplays
• poetry
• fiction
• plays

3. Between 1875 and 1878, Tolstoy was subjected to

• psychoanalysis
• a period of spiritual turmoil
• electroshock treatment
• numerous operations on his vermiform appendix

4. Tolstoy eventually converted to

• Christianity
• Jainism
• Judaism
• Islam

5. Tolstoy's religious views were close to

• the Greek Orthodox faith of Russian peasants
• the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church
• modern day "born again" Christians
• none of the above

6. The older Tolstoy, in polemical writings,

• told readers that they must be born again in Christ or go to hell with sodomites, poor people, and drug addicts
• both attacked Shakespeare as an immoral scribbler and told readers that they must be born again in Christ or go to hell with sodomites, poor people, and drug addicts
• praised Shakespeare as the "Christ of writers"
• attacked Shakespeare as an immoral scribbler

7. Tolstoy's religion

• de-emphasized miracles
• emphasized Christ as a teacher
• was based on ardent intellectual and spiritual scrutiny
• none of the above

8. Tolstoy considered his most important work to be

• Anna Karenina
• his non-fiction work on religion and ethics
• Crime and Punishment
• Hadji Murad

9. <i>The Death of Iván Ilych</i> is a novel where Tolstoy

• joins Tolstoy the Christian with Tolstoy the writer
• explicates religious views, but fails as an artist
• just plum goes crazy
• crafts a masterpiece, but fails as a Christian

10. Chapter One of the novel begins

• after Iván Ilych has gotten married
• when Iván Ilych is a baby
• after Iván Ilych has died
• sixty years in the future