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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. For whose benefit do the cadets demand Cyrano tell the story of his recent victory over the brigands?

2. What does Christian tell Cyrano is his only hope for staying in Roxane's affections?

3. Which of the following is not a person who arrives to see the play-within-the-play in the first scene?

4. To what English lord does Cyrano compare himself in Scene 10?

5. Which of the following is not an object to which Cyrano compares a kiss?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why hasn't Cyrano professed his love to Roxane?

2. What is the Comte de Guiche's treachery against Ligniere?

3. What news does Roxane tell Cyrano in Scene 6?

4. What requests does Roxane make of Cyrano before leaving in Scene 3?

5. What job is Cyrano given in Scene 12?

6. How does Cyrano delay Christian's kiss in Scene 10?

7. What furtive disagreement do Christian and Cyrano has at the end of Scene 7?

8. With what has Ragueneau been preoccupied in Act 2?

9. How is Christian resistant to Cyrano in Scene 4?

10. How does Cyrano react to the loutish Citizen's attack on his nose?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The idea of honor in CYRANO DE BERGERAC becomes synonymous with the idea of soldiery. Focusing on Le Bret, Carbon, and the cadets of Act 4, write an essay on the the lionization of the career soldier. How do these characters deal with adverse circumstances? What do they idolize and what do they revile? How do they react to the extremities of Cyrano?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay about the dynamic between Cyrano and the Comte de Guiche. Use the several insults that Cyrano deal de Guiche throughout the play as framework for the essay. Why does Cyrano deal the nobleman these slights, and how does de Guiche respond? Who pays for these slights? Does either man ultimately change as a result of this dynamic?

Essay Topic 3

The world of Cyrano de Bergerac is one in which good and kind people are often punished for their better graces. Write an essay on the harshness of this France, focusing on three characters:

Part 1) Ragueneau is a lover of beautiful things and a sharer of his livelihood with the less fortunate. How does the world, particularly in relationship to his marriage and his poetry, repay him?

Part 2) Carbon and Le Bret deeply love their troops and will do anything to ensure their safety. Where does this lead them as commanders? Are the elite Gascony Cadets treated with respect in the end?

Part 3) Cyrano has the firmest moral compass int he play. How does this put him in contention with more powerful men? What is the state of his life at the end of the play?

(see the answer keys)

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