Which Famous Russia Watcher Are You?

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Quiz Questions

1.
How well do you know Russian?
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- A.
  I know enough to get by and to toast properly.
- B.
  Not as well as I should, but I’m working on it.
- C.
  I am fluent. My interest in Russia comes from my fascination with Russian literature.
- D.
  I often visit Russia and get complimented on my language proficiency.
- E.
  Отлично! I am a native Russian speaker.
2.
What is your favorite Russian book?
- A.
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  War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
- B.
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  The Karamazov Brothers by Fyodor Dostoevsky
- C.
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  The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov
- D.
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  The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
- E.
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  Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
3.
What board game would you play with Russians?
- A.
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  Good old chess never dissapoints
- B.
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  Risk, a game of diplomacy, conflict, and conquest
- C.
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  Cards, perfect for a long train ride across the country
- D.
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  Scrabble, in English or Russian
4.
The subject matter of which international treaty you care about the most?
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- A.
  The 1919 Treaty of Versailles that formally ended World War I
- B.
  The 1949 North Atlantic Treaty
- C.
  The 1958 Lacy-Zarubin Agreement on Cultural Exchange between the U.S. and the USSR
- D.
  The 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
5.
Which of these Russian paintings speaks to you the most?
- A.
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  Trinity by Andrei Rublev
- B.
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  The Bolshevik by Boris Kustodiev
- C.
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  The Ninth Wave by Ivan Aivazovsky
- D.
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  The Black Square by Kazimir Malevich
- E.
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  Silent Abode by Isaac Levitan
- F.
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  Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan by Ilya Repin
6.
What is the best U.S. policy approach to Russia?
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- A.
  Patient, but firm containment
- B.
  Cultural exchange and engagement
- C.
  Curtailing Russia's expansionist tendencies
- D.
  Learning from Russian experience
7.
How do Russians refer to you?
- A.
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  Russophile
- B.
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  Friend of Russia
- C.
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  Impartial scholar
- D.
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  Cold Warrior
- E.
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  Russophobe
8.
Which quote resonates with you the most?
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- A.
  "The best thing we can do if we want the Russians to let us be Americans is to let the Russians be Russian."
- B.
  "In the longer run, I happen to think that Russia really has no choice but to become gradually more associated with the Euro-Atlantic community."
- C.
  "No matter what one thinks of Bolshevism, it is undeniable that the Russian Revolution is one of the great events of human history, and the rise of the Bolsheviki a phenomenon of worldwide importance."
- D.
  "… Russian history has been largely shaped by … its unique "culture of explosions." This often produced totally unexpected sudden cultural changes that were often exactly contrary to what had been expected."
9.
What kind of book about Russia would you want to write and be remembered for?
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- A.
  An interpretive history of Russian culture
- B.
  A book on grand strategy and world politics
- C.
  Well, it doesn’t have to be a book; it could be an article or even a telegram, as long as it has a profound impact
- D.
  An eye-witness account of an important historical event

Quiz Outcomes

1.
You are George F. Kennan
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You were practically destined to become a Russia expert. Your judgments about Russia rely on both academic research and extensive practical experience. You are praised as an analyst, yet your policy recommendations are often misinterpreted. You find being misunderstood extremely frustrating, but you know that shaping the future of diplomacy is a reward in itself and that history will prove you right.
2.
You are James H. Billington
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Your romance with Russia started when you discovered Tolstoy and Dostoevsky and became fascinated with the culture of imperial Russia. You visit whenever you have a chance, and you love sharing your passion and introducing others to Russia. Russians appreciate your lifelong interest and always make you feel welcome. Your greatest ambition is to leave a lasting legacy in the form of institutions that create and disseminate knowledge and expertise.
3.
You are Zbigniew Brzezinski
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Russians may accuse you of being anti-Russian, but it's because you have your own country's best interests in mind. In fact, you admire Russia, but distinguish between the nation and its government. You draw on your extensive research and academic experience to offer practical solutions to the foreign policy-makers, and the best reward is when they heed your advice. You plan to live a long life and see many of your predictions about world politics come true.
4.
You are John Reed
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You are passionate about Russia, to the point that it is sometimes difficult for you to remain impartial. You prefer being in the field to learning about the country just from the books. While some fellow experts are surprised by how often you travel to Russia, they envy your practical experience. Russians appreciate your interest and commitment, though the Kremlin wall burial they keep joking about sounds like a dubious honor to you.