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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 instrument does the minstrel play while Beowulf and his men are in the hall?
(a) The piano.
(b) The harp.
(c) The flute.
(d) The violin.

2. What instruments are playing as the Queen enters the hall?
(a) Trumpets.
(b) Harps.
(c) Flutes.
(d) Drums.

3. When does Hrothgar say he previously knew Beowulf?
(a) When Beowulf was a soldier in his army.
(b) Never.
(c) When Beowulf was an apprentice.
(d) When Beowulf was a child.

4. What does Hrothgar give Beowulf that is so tough no steel can cleave it?
(a) A shield.
(b) Shin guards.
(c) A suit of armor.
(d) A plated helmet.

5. How does Grendel enter the hall?
(a) Through the roof.
(b) By quietly opening the door.
(c) By sneaking quietly through the window.
(d) By ripping the door off.

Short Answer Questions

1. What wound does Beowulf inflict on Grendel?

2. According to Beowulf, what did he and Breca giddily plunge into the water to do?

3. For how many years had Grendel plagued Hrothgar?

4. Who does Unferth claim Beowulf lost a swimming match to?

5. According to Beowulf, who was the first ashore in the swimming match with Breca?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Unferth describe Beowulf when he tells the story of Beowulf's swimming race with Breca?

2. After Grendel's mother fails to kill Beowulf with a knife, how does Beowulf break free of her?

3. Why does Beowulf say he snaps his fingers in the face of death?

4. Why does Grendel retreat to his lair after battling with Beowulf?

5. When do Beowulf and his men learn of the attack of Grendel's mother on Heorot?

6. What does Wiglaf do to punish the cowardly men who did not help Beowulf to fight the dragon?

7. Why is Wiglaf the only one of Beowulf's men to come to Beowulf's aid as he battles the dragon?

8. How does Beowulf kill the dragon?

9. Once the Queen leaves Heorot, where do the Danes go?

10. What does Beowulf do while he's traveling to the dragon's den?

(see the answer keys)

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