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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 is the population of Balleybeg looking forward to?

2. What does Chris do that Kate thinks sacrilegious?

3. Who is Bernie O'Donnell?

4. What does Chris want Michael to believe about his father?

5. What is the first thing the Mundys listen to on the radio?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Agnes mean when she asks Chris, "Do you want to make a pagan of yourself?"

2. What is significant about the names Nora and Nina that Bernie O'Donnell gave to her twin daughters?

3. What is Maggie's reaction to hearing that her old friend Bernie O'Donnell is in town, and why does she react this way?

4. How far do the Mundys live from the rest of the village, and what significance is there in that distance?

5. How does Kate explain Uncle Jack's strange behavior?

6. What does Maggie release for Michael to see?

7. How has Uncle Jack brought status to the Mundy family?

8. How does Kate feel about Michael, and how can you tell?

9. Why do you think young Michael felt unease rather than amusement or joy when his mother and aunts danced?

10. Why do you think the playwright chose to have adult Michael speak the lines of child Michael instead of having two actors?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Compare and contrast the Ryangan idea of marriage with what Kate calls the "holy sacrament of matrimony." Judging from the main characters and their romantic relationships, make a statement comparing the costs and benefits of both kinds of marriage. Cite quotations from the play to support your thesis.

Essay Topic 2

When Rose is lost, the hierarchy within the group of sisters changes. Who is usually in charge and who takes over during the emergency? Using quotations from the play, explain this dynamic and tell why you think the change took place.

Essay Topic 3

Maggie asks riddles of young Michael, and he never offers any possible answers, even when she chides him for being stupid. In the end, she herself has forgotten the answer to the riddle she poses. Analyze the playwright's use of riddles in this way. What do you think he is trying to say about Maggie? About Michael? About life?

(see the answer keys)

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