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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. What does Chris do that Kate thinks sacrilegious?

2. Which of the sisters is first to stop work and dance to the radio music?

3. Where is Bernie O'Donnell's husband from?

4. Which of the sisters is the most graceful dancer?

5. What medication does Uncle Jack take?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Maggie notice about the pack of cigarettes Kate brought her, and why is it significant?

2. For what is the fox in the hen house a metaphor?

3. How does Kate explain Uncle Jack's strange behavior?

4. What do you think Michael means when he talks of a widening breach between what seemed to be and what was?

5. Why does Kate become angry when Rose repeats the idea that twins are a double blessing?

6. How has Uncle Jack brought status to the Mundy family?

7. From what does Kate struggle to protect her home when they joke about naming the radio?

8. What is Maggie's reaction to hearing that her old friend Bernie O'Donnell is in town, and why does she react this way?

9. Why do you think the parish priest doesn't want to look Kate in the eye since Uncle Jack came home?

10. Why do you think Rose can describe the Festival of Lughnasa to her sisters?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Dancing is a central metaphor in this play, and Michael ends the play with a monologue about what dance meant to him. Compare and contrast the effects of dance on him as a boy, when he is frightened by the wild, strange behavior of his family members as they dance, with his reflections on dance at the end of the play.

Essay Topic 2

The playwright, Brian Friel, uses the character Michael to tell the audience the eventual fate of the characters before the play itself is finished. How did knowing where the characters' actions would lead them affect you as a reader? Did you find it an effective dramatic device?

Essay Topic 3

Ceremonies are important in this story. Select two of the ceremonies that are described or enacted to compare and contrast. Possibilities might be the silent dance "wedding" of Chris and Gerry Evans, the exchange of hats between Uncle Jack and Gerry Evans, the wild Irish dancing of the five sisters, the Ryangan ceremonies to celebrate the harvest, or the festival of Lughnasa itself.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 931 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample