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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. On what holiday do Chris and Jason hear that Olstead's has moved half of their machines out of the factory?

2. What name does Tracey call Cynthia when seeing her for the first time since the factory lock-out?

3. When Jason comes to see Tracey after he is released from prison, what does he say had taken a lot of nerve on his part?

4. What product does the Olstead plant produce?

5. When, if at all, does Tracey say she wants the money back she has just given Jason?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is significant about Brucie giving Chris back his $10 once he hears of the trouble at the factory?

2. What does Cynthia say is the reason she has not seen Tracey and Jessie as often as she used to before the labor dispute?

3. How is the danger of nostalgia portrayed in Tracey's long story about her grandfather while she is standing outside of the bar with Oscar?

4. To what circumstances is Jason referring when he asks Tracey, "How the fuck did this happen?" (66)?

5. What emotion does Cynthia express to Chris that she has been feeling since his incarceration?

6. What is Oscar's true purpose for going outside where Tracey is smoking outside of the bar?

7. After the factory lock-out, what hypothesis does Cynthia share with Stan about why she may have been hired in the first place?

8. What does Tracey mean when she says that Oscar does not know her during their conversation outside the bar?

9. What does Cynthia say is the only upside of the trouble at Olstead's during the labor dispute?

10. How does the playwright reveal to the audience how serious Jessie had been about her plans to travel the world before she had taken a job at Olstead's at age 18?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine the effects of stress on the play's characters and the coping methods each character uses to deal with emotional turmoil. Which characters' methods are effective, which are ineffective, and how do these varying levels of efficiency affect the messages sent by the play?

Essay Topic 2

What is Lynn Nottage's message about the relationship between poverty and racism within her play Sweat?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the role of addiction with Lynn Nottage's play Sweat. What messages is she sending about the nature of addiction?

(see the answer keys)

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