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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. Who is Oedipus?
(a) A man with no destiny.
(b) Creon's father.
(c) King of Thebes.
(d) A lonley old beggar.

2. Antigone says the Nurse is stronger than what in Part 2?
(a) Nightmares.
(b) All of the answers are correct.
(c) Fever.
(d) Shadow.

3. What does Ismene say she can't do in Part 3?
(a) Find the brooch Antigone was asking for.
(b) All of the answers are correct.
(c) Believe that Haemon wants to marry Antigone.
(d) Sleep.

4. What does Antigone say wards off evil in Part 2?
(a) Her sister's love.
(b) The Nurse's hands.
(c) Her mother's cross.
(d) Her lucky charm.

5. How is Haemon described in Part 1?
(a) Adventurous and fickle.
(b) Dour and sapid.
(c) Boorish and uncommonly ugly.
(d) Fun loving and sport loving.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is the youth alone on the other side of the stage?

2. What does Antigone tell Nurse to do if her dog keeps waiting by the door?

3. Ismene reminds Antigone that Polynices was more of a ___________ to them.

4. How is Haemon related to Antigone?

5. What happens to Oedipus?

Short Essay Questions

1. The tragedy of lost lives for the sake of a political statement is one that permeates even into modern times. What message do you think Anouilh was trying to convey through his play, "Antigone"?

2. When the Chorus tells Creon that Haemon has been "mortally wounded" by Creon's indifference, Creon's response is that they all have. What does he mean by this statement?

3. What remains for Creon to do after the deaths of his wife, his son and his niece?

4. Prophecy is a large part of the story of Oedipus, his children, and the city of Thebes. A complicated and convoluted story, Oedipus's fate, and hence that of his children and Thebes, was foretold long before his birth and began with Oedipus's father, Laius's, evil act of kidnapping and murdering his friend's young son. In Part 2, the reader begins to get a feel for the inevitability of this curse and its after effects on the city of Thebes. What are Antigone's feelings about this curse as shown in Part 2?

5. Ismene uses several arguments in an effort to convince Antigone that her plan to bury Polynices is foolhardy. Choose one of those arguments and describe why the argument might work or why it might not.

6. The relationship between Antigone and Haemon is complicated. Despite his vows of love, Antigone cannot bring herself to believe that Haemon would choose her over Ismene. In Part 3, what does Antigone do to test Haemon?

7. In Part 2, what is ironic about the conversation between the Nurse and Antigone?

8. In examining Antigone, one is drawn to the conclusion that Anouilh is influenced greatly by the genre of Greek tragedy. There are several key differences, however. One of those differences is the role of the gods in the lives of common men and women. In what manner does Anouilh firmly plant his storyline in the modern day by supplanting man's influence for the influence the gods?

9. Ismene asks Antigone if she has considered some of the possible ramifications of her actions. What were the ramifications that Ismene was asking about, and how does Antigone react to the question?

10. Elaborate on the purpose of the play's vague setting.

(see the answer keys)

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