All right, it’s Sunday morning, presumably, and time to check how closely you examined the Gandhi notes from one week ago today. Not seriously, but in the interest of nostalgia and a certain kind of symmetry, here is the test for which I did in fact tell the students every answer, every year. I know the test is easier for having been in class and for having examined the notes. I wonder if you did indeed need to have seen the movie…

If you have never seen Gandhi, it genuinely deserved the many Academy Awards it won. Perhaps you should all Netflix or otherwise rent the film.

English II Gandhi Unit Test

Multiple Choice  [1 point each]

1.  Into what religion was Gandhi born?

A–Muslim
B–Hindu
C–Sikh
D–Jewish
E–Christian

2. Name the region where Gandhi was born.

A–Porbandar
B–Bombay
C–Delhi
D–Pakistan
E–Calcutta

3. What is Gandhi’s first name?

A–Mohandas
B–Mahatma
C–Nehru
D–Patel
E–Kasturbai

4. What is the name of Gandhi’s wife? [use choices in number 3]

5. What was Gandhi famous for inventing?

A–Rowlatt Bills
B–nonviolent resistance (satyagraha)
C–spinning wheel
D–Hinduism
E–independence

6. Where in the world did Gandhi first strive for equal rights?

A–Alabama
B–South Africa
C–India
D–England
E–Russia

7. Name the minister who came from India to help Gandhi, and who became a great friend.

A–Saadya Patel
B–Pandit Nehru
C–Vince Walker
D–Margaret Bourke–White
E–Charles Andrews

8. What type of lawyer was Gandhi?

A–jurist
B–barrister
C–solicitor
D–an American one
E–a dramatic and outgoing one

9. Name the (fictitious) American newspaper reporter in the film, who first interviewed Gandhi at his South African ashram.

A–Saadya Patel
B–Vince Walker
C–Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
D–Charles Andrews
E–Margaret Bourke–White

10. Name the man who “ruled” South Africa and negotiated with Gandhi.

A–Elizabeth Madeleine Slade (Mirabehn)
B–Rajkumar Shukla
C–Professor Gokhale
D–General Jan C. Smuts
E–Hermann Kallembach

11. When did Gandhi return to India (on a big ship with the new military governor)?

A–1894
B–1915
C–1919
D–1930
E–1948

12. Name the leader of the Muslim League and eventual prime minister of Pakistan.

A–Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
B–Nathuram Godse
C–Muhammad Ali Jinnah
D–G. K. Gokhale
E–Lord Mountbatten

13. Name the man who inspired Gandhi to “find India.” [use choices in number 12]

14. Name the indigo–growing region where Gandhi protested, seeking fair treatment for peasant farmers.

A–Porbandar
B–Delhi
C–Champaran
D–Bombay
E–Amritsar

15. Name the laws imposed on India against ”sedition” before 1919.

A–Anti–Gandhian Acts
B–Rowlatt Bills
C–Pass Laws
D–Delhi Compact
E–Brahmin Resolves

16. Name the city where General Dyer opened fire on a peaceful gathering, April 13, 1919. [use choices in number 14]

17. Name the anti–cloth boycott of the 1920s.

A–Noncooperation
B–satyagraha
C–swadeshi boycott
D–Salt March
E–Roundtable Conference

18. Name the protest Gandhi made in 1930, walking from his ashram to Dandi on the Indian Ocean. [use choices in number 17]

19. Name the English admiral’s daughter who joined Gandhi’s ashram. [choose from number 10]

20. Name the salt works on which thousands of Indians marched peacefully and were attacked with clubs.

A–Bombay
B–Delhi
C–Calcutta
D–Dharasana
E–Porbandar

21. Name the last British viceroy of India.

A–Jinnah
B–Patel
C–Mountbatten
D–Nehru
E–Gokhale

22. What is the date of Indian independence?

A–July 4, 1776
B–April 13, 1919
C–May 16, 1931
D–August 15, 1947
E–January 30, 1948

23. Name the other country, founded on the same date , as a Moslem nation separate from India.

24.  Name the first prime minister of India.

25.  Name the man who assassinated Gandhi.

Matching Vocabulary

Print the letter for the correct definition in the blank by each term. [1 point each]

1. anarchist
2. ascetic
3. assimilate
4. boycott
5. fast
6. guru
7. homespun
8. indigo
9. injustice
10. insurgent
11. nirvana
12. nonviolence
13. partition
14. sedition
15. synthetic

Short Answer

Define and explain each of the following five Gandhian terms. [3 points each]

1. Satyagraha
2. brahmacharya
3. ashram
4. swadeshi
5. irony

Brief Essay Portion

For up to fifteen points each, answer no less than three of the following questions. Copy the number and the whole question, then write your answer ln a well developed and coherent paragraph. If time remains, answer more questions for further credit.

1. What is the “way out of hell” Gandhi proposed to the Hindu murderer in Calcutta? Explain how and why the man (and society) might be saved in that way.
2. Explain the three parts of the Rowlatt Bills (1919).
3. Explain the religious and personal background, point and purpose of Gandhi’s fasts. Please use examples ln your explanation.
4. For what religious group was Pakistan created? Explain why, what factors, which people, and what peculiarities entered into the creation of that country.
5. Explain parallels or similarities in thinking, actions and attitude between Gandhi and Martin Luther King, jr.
6. Explain this quotation: “The only devils in this world are those running around ln our own hearts. And that is where all of our battles ought to be fought” (Gandhi).
7. How has your understanding of Gandhi’s assassination changed between the first showing of the incident and the end of the film? Consider what the film has shown and taught you and the point of view each time.
8. Evaluate Gandhi as a person based on the six pillars of character―Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, Citizenship.

Extra Credit

1. Name two individuals from whom Gandhi said he developed his ideas of nonviolent resistance.
2. Name the director of the film Gandhi.

And so it goes. This is the final form I used in 2009, just less than a year ago as I write. The test remained essentially the same all through the years, however. I think the essay questions underwent the most evolution. (I am especially proud of myself for figuring out how to turn the matching answers into a JPEG so I could position them right next to the terms for this blog post.)

Oh, I promise: I won’t fill the blog with old school work. This one just seemed appropriate. (I don’t promise not to use other old school items, however. I just won’t use only such things.)

By the way, for all my Facebook friends who have listed favorite quotes by Gandhi: his name is G A N D H I. (Let’s keep those pesky aitches where they belong.)

Enquire for answers…

©2010 John Randolph Burrow, Magickal Monkey Enterprises, Ltd, S.A.