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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. Who says, "we can't be sure of anything, young lady, in this world"?

2. What does the professor suggest they begin with in The Lesson?

3. The maid tells the professor it is the what time he has killed his pupils?

4. What is the fire chief wearing in The Bald Soprano?

5. In The Bald Soprano, the woman who asphyxiated herself by gas thought it was what?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the professor's discourse on philology.

2. Describe the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Martin when they "meet."

3. What is Absurdism and how does it inhabit the four plays of the book?

4. Discuss the differences between The Bald Soprano and the other plays in the collection.

5. What happens in the beginning of The Lesson? What is the setting?

6. What does Mary say in her aside to the audience in The Bald Soprano?

7. What is notable about the title of The Bald Soprano?

8. What does the maid interrupt the professor and pupil for?

9. How does the ending of The Lesson relate to the other plays' endings in the collection?

10. Why are the initial stage directions atypical in The Lesson?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare the settings of The Bald Soprano and The Chairs. How are they similar? How are they different? What symbols or motifs exist in each?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the plot structure of The Lesson. Describe the major plot points and how the actions of the characters propel forward the play and build tension.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the plot structure of the play The Chairs. Where is the exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution? Define these in your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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