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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. What quality does Salieri say he requires in a wife?

2. What is Rosenberg's opinion of prodigies?

3. What surprises Salieri's servants?

4. How is the Venticelli's speech described?

5. What excuse does Salieri offer for not himself trying some variations on the march of welcome?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does this scene show us of Mozart's talent?

2. What is Van Swieten's attitude to Salieri at this point in the play?

3. What happens in this section of the play to fertilize the growing seed of Salieri's murderous ideas?

4. What is the significance of the golden light that bathes the Emperor and his court?

5. What is striking about Salieri's description of the Adagio from the Serenade for Thirteen Wind Instruments (K. 361)?

6. What story does the Emperor tell to Mozart?

7. In what ways does Salieri work to undermine Mozart in this section of the play?

8. For what reason might the scene in the Baroness's library be considered ironic?

9. Comment on the dramatic function of the Venticelli in the opening scene.

10. What concrete information about Mozart is passed to Salieri by the Venticelli?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

'Amadeus is a tale of the naive artist pitted against a social machine he is entirely unaware of.' Discuss with close reference to the play.

Essay Topic 2

'Salieri is almost an archetypal hypocrite.' What is a hypocrite and does Salieri qualify for this label? Who else in Amadeus can be described as a Hypocrite? How does the behavior of such individuals affect others? Respond with close reference to the play.

Essay Topic 3

In what ways is Amadeus a struggle between the forces of innovation and the power of convention? Make close reference to the text.

(see the answer keys)

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