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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. Which of the Elephant Man's features is described as being "perfectly formed"?

2. While Treves and Merrick are talking, why does the porter enter Merrick's room?

3. What does Treves use to show the audience the Elephant Man's deformities?

4. Where does Treves first meet the Elephant Man?

5. As the police are searching his belongings, what word does Merrick croak over and over?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Merrick feel about the attention he is receiving for his artistic abilities?

2. How does Mrs. Kendal feel about the model Merrick is working on?

3. How are the pinheads treated by their manager?

4. During their argument about Heaven, what reasons does Treves give Merrick for sending Mrs. Kendal away?

5. Why has Treves moved to London?

6. What sales pitch does Ross use to entice passersby into the Elephant Man's tent?

7. In his letter to the editor, what does Gomm say will happen to Merrick's finances?

8. After Merrick has returned to his room, what does Treves divulge to the audience about his emotions in sending Mrs. Kendal away?

9. How does Treves handle the process of interviewing and hiring a nurse to care for Merrick?

10. How does Treves describe the Elephant Man to his audience during his first lecture?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the novel, John Merrick endures the abuses of many outside forces. Choose two abusers who deeply impacted John Merrick's life, describe their abuses, and then describe Merrick's reaction to the abuse. How does Merrick's reaction to the abuse give the reader deeper insight into his character?

Essay Topic 2

Merrick's death has particular significance in that the pinheads were involved in it. Explain how the pinheads urged Merrick to his death and what the symbolic importance of the pinheads' involvement in the death is.

Essay Topic 3

The nature of "freak shows" and traveling circuses are explored in the opening scenes of the play. Briefly describe the settings of the freak shows and the way the managers treat their "freak" employees. How does the microcosm of freak shows act as a symbol for the way the entire world views "freaks"?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 869 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample