View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who would be Ariston Achaion if Achilles were not?

2. What color cloak is Paris clothed in?

3. How does the duel between Menelaus and Paris end?

4. How does Patroclus say Briseis is different from his mother?

5. Who tears down the wall around the Greeks’ ships?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the tension that is created in the meeting between Achilles and Agamemnon.

2. How do the Greeks react when Achilles withdraws from the fighting?

3. How does Thetis help Achilles’ renown when the Greek ships land at Aulis?

4. How does the battle go, once Achilles is not fighting?

5. What is it that prevents the Greeks from sailing to Troy from Aulis?

6. How does Achilles react to Patroclus’ death?

7. What does Patroclus’ accomplish in his interview with Agamemnon?

8. How does Achilles’ relationship to Hector change?

9. Patroclus recalls Chiron saying that no man’s life is worth more than another’s. How does he settle the questions this philosophical statement raises, in light of Achilles’ conflict with Agamemnon?

10. How does Chriseis create a crisis for the Greeks?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write a character sketch of the author based on her style and content. What values does she hold dear? What are her hopes and fears? What kind of person do you think she is? Anchor your sketch in passages in the book.

Essay Topic 2

What topics would you like to research further, after reading The Song of Achilles? Describe why additional research or reading would be beneficial to an understanding of this book. Propose a list of articles or books you would read in order to get a better handle on The Song of Achilles.

Essay Topic 3

Debate the proposition that Achilles’ fame comes more from his regard for Patroclus and his treatment of Briseis than from his renown in battle.

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 892 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample