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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What sort of characters are the women in A Children's Tragedy?
(a) Secondary characters.
(b) Primary characters.
(c) Stock characters.
(d) Cameos.

2. What was censored in reissues of A Children's Tragedy?
(a) Any unflattering references to the adult figures.
(b) Any words that were not German.
(c) Sexual words.
(d) Words alluding to the political unrest.

3. How does Melchior feel about people who end up in Hell because they do not enjoy visiting the poor?
(a) It is entirely their fault.
(b) It is society's fault for putting the pressure on them.
(c) It is the Church's fault.
(d) It is through no fault of their own.

4. Who do the girls in this play find very attractive?
(a) Melchior.
(b) Ernst.
(c) Hanschen.
(d) Moritz.

5. According to Bentley, what event in Wedekind's life influences the plot of A Children's Tragedy?
(a) A double suicide at the author's school.
(b) Coming out to his family.
(c) His girlfriend's miscarriage.
(d) His sister ran away from home.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Bentley describe Moritz and Melchior in relationship to each other?

2. Who is the author of the introduction to the play?

3. What sort of story is A Children's Tragedy?

4. According to the masked man, what is morality?

5. In the most sexual scene of the play, what is alluded to heavily?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Bentley describe Moritz and Melchior in relation to each other in his introduction?

2. Why does Moritz not want to listen to Melchior's explanations about sex?

3. What are some of the ways this play was censored in re-prints?

4. What thought does Wendla have that offends her mother? Where does it come from?

5. What are Melchior's beliefs about good deeds, as related to Wendla?

6. How does this play fit into both genres of expressionism and realism?

7. Why is this play described as "coming-of-age?"

8. What is the purpose of the Moritat in the introduction?

9. Describe the main theme of one of the characters that is pointed out as being a philosophy of Goethe.

10. Why did Martha's parents rip her nightgown from her?

(see the answer keys)

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