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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. From where did Oedipus come?
(a) Rome.
(b) Corinth.
(c) Troy.
(d) Thebes.

2. Who is Oedipus' father in Corinth?
(a) King Atreus.
(b) King Priam.
(c) King Polybus.
(d) King Menelaus.

3. Who kills Polyxena?
(a) Ulysses.
(b) Pyrrhus.
(c) Agamemnon.
(d) Menelaus.

4. About what does a Trojan elder instruct Andromache to lie?
(a) She will claim Astyanax is hiding in the castle.
(b) She will claim Astyanax was killed when Troy fell.
(c) She will claim that she was not Hector's wife.
(d) She will claim that she is protected by Apollo.

5. What is the chorus in the fifth act of "Oedipus" questioning when they learn about their king's punishment?
(a) The justice of fate.
(b) The self-fulfilling nature of prophecies.
(c) The hatred Oedipus must feel for himself.
(d) Humanity's tendencies to make mistakes.

6. Whom does Hecuba predict will not find peace for a long time?
(a) Pyrrhus.
(b) Agamemnon.
(c) Menelaus.
(d) Ulysses.

7. Whose priests gave Oedipus the prophecy that he will kill his father and marry his mother?
(a) Zeus.
(b) Hades.
(c) Hephaestus.
(d) Apollo.

8. What does Oedipus reveal to Jocasta at the end of the play?
(a) He is cursed by the gods.
(b) He never loved her.
(c) He is leaving Thebes.
(d) He is her son.

9. Why is Pyrrhus angry at Agamemnon?
(a) Agamemnon refuses to acknowledge Pyrrhus as a warrior.
(b) Agamemnon refuses to accept responsibility for Achilles' death.
(c) Agamemnon has not sacrificed a maiden in honor Achilles.
(d) Agamemnon refuses to take the Trojan women captive.

10. What does Creon advise Oedipus to do after the former relays the message from the murdered king?
(a) Pray to Zeus.
(b) Commit suicide.
(c) Renounce the throne.
(d) Consult with Tiresias.

11. In the second act of "Oedipus," what knowledge does Creon relate that will end the plague?
(a) Oedipus must make a human sacrifice to Hera.
(b) Laius' murder must be avenged.
(c) Oedipus must seek out a special herb.
(d) Jocasta must bear another child.

12. What is Tiresias unable to do in the second act of "Oedipus"?
(a) Raise Laius' ghost.
(b) Explain the Oracle's prophecy.
(c) Save Jocasta's life.
(d) Authenticate Oedipus' royal blood.

13. What does Oedipus do to Creon at the end of the third act?
(a) He tortures him.
(b) He exiles him.
(c) He kills him.
(d) He imprisons him.

14. For whom do Hecuba and the chorus lament, though they say nothing will ever adequately express their loss?
(a) Paris.
(b) Priam.
(c) Achilles.
(d) Hector.

15. What does Agamemnon claim about Achilles' behavior during battle?
(a) He helped the Trojans whenever the Greeks angered him.
(b) He was a coward.
(c) He killed people on both sides of the battle.
(d) He won the war for them.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Tiresias' occupation?

2. In the fourth act of "Oedipus," what does the titular character recall before his arrival in the city?

3. Whom does Oedipus defeat before the start of the play?

4. According to the chorus, what is the best way for a man to die?

5. Why is Creon sent away at the end of the first act of "Oedipus"?

(see the answer keys)

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