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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. Eben's mother was Ephraim's _____ wife.

2. Where has Marsden been before the play begins in Strange Interlude?

3. What is the name of Ephraim's new wife in Desire Under the Elms?

4. How much time has passed between Part 1 and Part 2, Scene 1 of Desire Under the Elms?

5. Where does Act 3 take place in Strange Interlude?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Evans know Darrell in Strange Interlude? How does he feel about him?

2. What does Abbie confess to Eben in Part 3 in Desire Under the Elms? What is his reaction?

3. How does Eben's position in the household contribute to his conflicts over the estate in Desire Under the Elms?

4. What is the symbolic statement behind Abbie and Eben's entrance into the parlor in Part 2 in Desire Under the Elms?

5. What news does Eben return to the farmhouse to inform his brothers of, in Part 1 of Desire Under the Elms? What is the brothers' reaction?

6. What does Nina reveal in reading aloud her letter in Act 3 of Strange Interlude?

7. What do Evans and his mother talk about in Act 3 of Strange Interlude? What does she ask him about Nina?

8. What does the argument over the estate devolve to between the brothers in Part 1 of Desire Under the Elms?

9. How does Darrell feel toward Evans in Act 5 of Strange Interlude? What does he plan to do at the end of the act?

10. What has happened between Acts 5 and 6 of Strange Interlude? Who reveals the exposition at the beginning of this act?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the theme of "Ghosts of the Past" as they are reflected in each of the three plays of the collection (including all three plays of the Electra trilogy). What symbols are used to reflect the theme?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the theme of Incest and Family Secrets in the Mourning Becomes Electra trilogy. Within which characters is this theme manifested? What actions are representative of the theme?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss how the setting of each of the three plays affects the action and the characters. How are the settings different in the plays? What correlates to each? Discuss era and historical period in your answer as well as location.

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