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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. Who does Cyrano strike at the end of Act 2?

2. According to the poets of Scene 4, how many ruffians lie dying because of Cyrano's sword?

3. About what subject, according to Lise, will Ragueneau stop talking?

4. What famous French literary figure appears in the fourth scene of the play?

5. In Scene 2, Ragueneau wraps an order of patties in a sonnet to whom?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Cyrano embrace Christian at the beginning of Scene 10?

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

3. Why does Cyrano decide to convince Roxane to kiss Christian?

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

5. Why does Cyrano truly detest Montfleury?

6. Describe the scene at the beginning of the play.

7. Describe the scene created when Ragueneau's poets enter the shop.

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

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

10. What job is Cyrano given in Scene 12?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Roxane develops from a mere object of affection into a fully-dimensional strong-willed character. Chart this transition in an essay. How does Roxane appear in the first act of the play? Is her role active, or merely objective to male characters? By scene 4, how has she transformed herself? What bold actions does she undertake without assistance from others?

Essay Topic 2

Cyrano is renowned in the play not only as a warrior and leader, but also as an artist. Write an essay about Cyrano the artist. How does he bring beauty and verse into every aspect of his being? Does he consider art a profession? Does he intend to make money from it? Cite examples from the text in answering these questions.

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)

This section contains 900 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample